Reconstructing Nipples after Breast Cancer Surgery

If you lose a nipple after breast cancer surgery, a plastic surgeon can reconstruct a nipple. You have alternatives to reconstruction, too.

When a breast cancer patient undergoes a mastectomy, it’s possible her nipple may be preserved. But it depends on how far the nipple and areola (the ring of pigmented skin around a nipple) are from the margins of the cancer tumor and surrounding tissue.

Nipple-sparing mastectomy is an option only for women with very small, early-stage cancer near the outer part of the breast, according to the America Cancer Society. As a result, mastectomy surgery results in most breast cancer patients losing their nipples.

But that doesn’t mean your reconstructed breast will never have a nipple again.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Treatment for Breast Cancer Has Manageable Side Effects

Thanks to advances in plastic surgery techniques, breast reconstruction after a mastectomy provides more natural looking results than ever before.

Although each case is different and revolves around the stage and type of breast cancer, as well as the patient’s preferences, breast reconstruction can often take place at the same time as a mastectomy. After your chest heals from reconstruction surgery and the position of your reconstructed breast has stabilized, a plastic surgeon can then reconstruct the nipple.

“The patient’s oncologist determines whether a nipple can be saved during a mastectomy. If the nipple cannot be saved, we can reconstruct it three to six months down the line,” said Atlanta-based plastic surgeon Lisa DiFrancesco, MD, who performs breast and nipple reconstruction for breast cancer patients.

Although surgeons sometimes use skin from other parts of your body — including labia skin to create the darker skin tone of an areola — the vast majority of the time skin from around your breast is used for nipple reconstruction, according to DiFrancesco.

To reconstruct nipples, plastic surgeons cut and move a small flap of skin from your reconstructed breast to the nipple site. “We create a pattern for the flap, position it, and create a 3-d nipple out of this flap,” DiFrancesco said. “Then we work with medical tattoo artists to color the nipple.”

Most patients are very happy with the results, although it’s important to understand your new nipple is not functional.

“It does not have nerves so sensation in the reconstructed nipple will never return,” DiFrancesco explained. “And it cannot become erect.”

Not every woman opts for nipple reconstruction, even when it is offered. “Fifty percent of women choose not to reconstruct. They don’t want to undergo additional surgery, or they have other personal reasons,” DiFrancesco said.

You have several alternatives if you don’t want surgical nipple reconstruction. For example, skilled medical tattoo artists can create the illusion of a 3-D nipple through color variations. In addition, you can wear nipple prosthetics and remove them whenever you chose. They are usually made of silicon and look and feel like real nipples.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: Our Breast Cancer Center