New findings from a study of breast cancer survivors show that more women are choosing to “go flat” than have breast reconstruction after a mastectomy, even in spite of very few support from doctors, according to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) Health.
The study was published in the Journal Annals of Surgical Oncology.
For the study, UCLA researchers asked 931 women who had a mastectomy without breast reconstruction to evaluate the motivating factors for taking this procedure. The researchers also measured whether surgeons provided them with enough information and support for smoothing.
The researchers found that most women did not choose any reconstruction because of a desire for faster recovery, avoiding a foreign body position and the belief that reconstruction was not necessary for the body’s image. their bodies.
The majority of women (74%) were satisfied with their decision, but more than a quarter of those surveyed were not happy with the appearance of their breast wall, i.e. their skin, fat, muscles, bones and other bones that form its protective structure around the vital organs in the area between neck and abdomen.
Getting support from their medical team for the decision brought them into their level of satisfaction. Nearly a quarter (22%) said they had experienced “flat rejection,” where surgeons did not initially offer the procedure, did not support the patient’s decision or they left extra skin in case the patient changes her mind. Women who suffered this type of conflict were generally less satisfied with their decision, the study found.
According to senior author Deanna Attai, MD, clinical professor of surgery at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine, whether or not rehab after undergoing mastectomy is a very personal choice. Women who choose to go flat should be supported by their medical team and not be treated as if they are not worried about their vision after surgery.
“We hope that the results of this study will inform general and breast surgeons that going flat is a valid option for patients and one that must be offered as an option,” Attai concluded. “We also hope that the results will help to inform patients that going flat is an option and empowering them to seek surgeons who will make this choice and respect the joint. their closure. “
Women’s health journalist Catherine Guthrie, a breast cancer survivor and advocate and author of the memorial FLAT: Recovering my body from breast cancer, praising the publication of the new research. “This study is an important first strike in removing the (often unconscious) patterns of parenting and cheating that have accumulated – unseen and unexamined – in breast cancer care for decades, ”She told Cancer Health. “Having oncology surgeons recognize the importance of hearing and respecting women’s choices gives me new hope. ”
For a related broadcast, read “Post-Mastectomy Options” and “Reconstruction Options & Me.”