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Decision making in surgical oncology of the breast has increased its complexity over the last twenty years. This Delphi survey investigates the opinion of an expert panel about the decision making process in surgical procedures on the breast for oncological purposes. Twenty-seven experts were invited to partake into a Delphi Survey. At the first round they have been asked to provide a list of features involved in the decision making process (patient's characteristics; disease characteristics; surgical techniques, outcomes) and comment on it. Using text-mining techniques we extracted a list of mono-bi-trigrams potentially representative of decision drivers. A technique of "natural language processing" called Word2vec was used to validate changes to texts using synonyms and plesionyms. Word2Vec was also used to test the semantic relevance of n-grams within a corpus of knowledge made up of books edited by panel members. The final list of variables extracted was submitted to the judgement of the panel for final validation at the second round of the Delphi using closed ended questions. 52 features out of 59 have been approved by the panel. The overall consensus was 87.1% Text mining and natural language processing allowed the extraction of a number of decision drivers and outcomes as part of the decision making process in surgical oncology on the breast. This result was obtained transforming narrative texts into structured data. The high level of consensus among experts provided validation to this process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Introduction: Neoadjuvant therapy (NAT) should increase the rate of breast-conserving surgery (BCS) in non-metastatic breast cancer (BC) patients, especially in those achieving tumor shrinkage. Still, the conversion from a pre-planned mastectomy to BCS in patients responding to NAT is not a widespread standard. We aimed to identify factors influencing surgical choices in this setting., Materials and Methods: We retrospectively collected data of BC patients with complete remission of primitive tumor (ypT0) after NAT, treated with BCS or mastectomy in two Italian breast units. Predictors of mastectomy were explored using logistic regression. Distant recurrence and event-free survival were assessed in the BCS and mastectomy cohort., Results: 243 patients were included, 147 (60.5 %) treated with BCS and 96 (39.5 %) treated with mastectomy. In the mastectomy group, there were more centrally-located, multiple and larger tumors. At univariate regression analysis, central location, baseline tumor extension on ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), multiple foci and clinical stage were significantly associated with the chance of receiving mastectomy. At multivariate analysis, only baseline focality on US and extension on MRI retained significance as predictors of mastectomy. Distant recurrence and event-free survival were significantly longer in patients undergoing BCS., Conclusion: Baseline tumor extension and focality were the main predictors of mastectomy in patients with ypT0 after NAT. However, BCS did not negatively affect survival outcomes in our cohort. An effort should be made to avoid potentially unnecessary mastectomy in this population, aiming at minimizing surgery-associated toxicities and improving patients' quality of life., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None, (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Background: Nipple-sparing mastectomies (NSMs) and implant-based breast reconstructions have evolved from 2-stage reconstructions with tissue expansion and implant exchange to direct-to-implant procedures. In this study, we tested safety and efficacy of polyurethane-based implants according to standard assessment tools., Objectives: This study aimed to test safety and feasibility of polyurethane-coated implants with standardized assessment employing internationally acknowledged evaluation criteria., Methods: Cases of NSMs followed by breast reconstruction in 1 stage with immediate prepectoral polyurethane-coated implant placement were retrospectively reviewed. Preoperative characteristics of the population have been collected. Adherence to quality assurance criteria of the Association of Breast Surgery-British Association of Plastic Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgeons was verified. Complications were assessed with the Clavien Dindo classification, modified for the breast. Rippling, implant rotation, and malposition were also evaluated., Results: Sixty-three consecutive patients underwent 74 NSMs and immediate breast reconstruction with micro polyurethane foam-coated anatomic implants. In 5 cases we had unplanned readmissions with return to the operating room under general anesthesia (6.7%) and implant loss within 3 months from breast reconstruction (5 implants, 6.7%). Postoperative complications according to Clavien Dindo were grade 1 in 6 cases (8.1%), grade 2 in 3 cases (4%), and 3b in 5 cases (6.7%)., Conclusions: Polyurethane-coated implants may prevent rotation and malposition and capsular contracture in the short term. Unplanned readmission rates and implant loss rates in the short term may be slightly higher.See the abstract translated into Hindi, Portuguese, Korean, German, Italian, Arabic, Chinese, and Taiwanese online here: https://doi.org/10.1093/asj/sjad301., (© The Author(s) 2023. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Aesthetic Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)

Background: Measurements of breast morphology are a determinant of the assessment of any surgical procedure, either reconstructive or cosmetic. This study aims to investigate the association between easy anthropometric measurements and values of quality of life assessed in a sample of asymptomatic women., Methodology: Healthy asymptomatic women were admitted for this study. The following measurements were assessed: height, weight, nipple to sternal notch distance, areola to infra-mammary fold distance (right vs. left), right-left nipple distance. The Breast Q questionnaire (Italian translation V.1, pre-op breast conservation surgery) in the following domains: satisfaction with breasts; psycho-social satisfaction; physical satisfaction; sexual satisfaction, which was used to assess breast-related quality of life., Results: One hundred and forty-five women responded to the breast Q questionnaire. The mean age of the sample was 44.3 years; the medium BMI was 24.1; Spearman correlation coefficients revealed that all the investigated values were negatively correlated to the "satisfaction with breasts" domain. Psychosexual satisfaction was associated with age; BMI; nipple to sternal notch distance. After normalization for age values, we observed that "satisfaction with breast" was, once again, highly correlated to BMI; nipple to sternal notch distance; areola to IMF distance. In all cases, the higher the values, the lower the scores., Conclusions: Distances between easy relevant anatomical landmarks are representative of patients' breast-related quality of life in a population of asymptomatic women. These findings allow us to identify an ideal anthropometric framework that can be used as a validated surgical endpoint for cosmetic and oncological procedures.

Introduction: Breast lesions of uncertain malignant potential (B3) include atypical ductal and lobular hyperplasias, lobular carcinoma in situ, flat epithelial atypia, papillary lesions, radial scars and fibroepithelial lesions as well as other rare miscellaneous lesions. They are challenging to categorise histologically, requiring specialist training and multidisciplinary input. They may coexist with in situ or invasive breast cancer (BC) and increase the risk of subsequent BC development. Management should focus on adequate classification and management whilst avoiding overtreatment. The aim of these guidelines is to provide updated information regarding the diagnosis and management of B3 lesions, according to updated literature review evidence., Methods: These guidelines provide practical recommendations which can be applied in clinical practice which include recommendation grade and level of evidence. All sections were written according to an updated literature review and discussed at a consensus meeting. Critical appraisal by the expert writing committee adhered to the 23 items in the international Appraisal of Guidelines, Research and Evaluation (AGREE) tool., Results: Recommendations for further management after core-needle biopsy (CNB) or vacuum-assisted biopsy (VAB) diagnosis of a B3 lesion reported in this guideline, vary depending on the presence of atypia, size of lesion, sampling size, and patient preferences. After CNB or VAB, the option of vacuum-assisted excision or surgical excision should be evaluated by a multidisciplinary team and shared decision-making with the patient is crucial for personalizing further treatment. De-escalation of surgical intervention for B3 breast lesions is ongoing, and the inclusion of vacuum-assisted excision (VAE) will decrease the need for surgical intervention in further approaches. Communication with patients may be different according to histological diagnosis, presence or absence of atypia, or risk of upgrade due to discordant imaging. Written information resources to help patients understand these issues alongside with verbal communication is recommended. Lifestyle interventions have a significant impact on BC incidence so lifestyle interventions need to be suggested to women at increased BC risk as a result of a diagnosis of a B3 lesion., Conclusions: These guidelines provide a state-of-the-art overview of the diagnosis, management and prognosis of B3 lesions in modern multidisciplinary breast practice., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

This study reports on feasibility and applicability of totally autologous primary breast reconstructions based on TDAP flaps using a standard set of internationally approved reporting scales. We reviewed 15 cases in patients with a good donor area in the back not suitable for implant or free flaps reconstructions. Complications according to Clavien Dindo were: 1 Grade 1 (seroma in the back). The ABS-BAPRAS quality assurance indicators 10, 11, and 12 were entirely fulfilled. No pedicled flap loss occurred; no unplanned return to theatre and no unplanned readmission within 3 months. Breast-related quality of life values are reported at 3 months and one year in four domains of the BREAST Q v. 2.0 (breast reconstruction post-op questionnaire). At 1 year the mean Q-score for satisfaction with breast was 70.5, for psychosocial well-being was 72.3; for sexual well-being was 58.8; for physical well-being (chest wall) was 70.60. The TDAP based totally autologous breast reconstruction reported to be a feasible and safe alternative to implant based or free flaps reconstructions according to consolidate international outcome reporting measures., (© 2023 Elsevier Ltd, BASO ∼ The Association for Cancer Surgery, and the European Society of Surgical Oncology. All rights reserved.)

Introduction: Books and papers are the most relevant source of theoretical knowledge for medical education. New technologies of artificial intelligence can be designed to assist in selected educational tasks, such as reading a corpus made up of multiple documents and extracting relevant information in a quantitative way., Methods: Thirty experts were selected transparently using an online public call on the website of the sponsor organization and on its social media. Six books edited or co-edited by members of this panel containing a general knowledge of breast cancer or specific surgical knowledge have been acquired. This collection was used by a team of computer scientists to train an artificial neural network based on a technique called Word2Vec., Results: The corpus of six books contained about 2.2 billion words for 300d vectors. A few tests were performed. We evaluated cosine similarity between different words., Discussion: This work represents an initial attempt to derive formal information from textual corpus. It can be used to perform an augmented reading of the corpus of knowledge available in books and papers as part of a discipline. This can generate new hypothesis and provide an actual estimate of their association within the expert opinions. Word embedding can also be a good tool when used in accruing narrative information from clinical notes, reports, etc., and produce prediction about outcomes. More work is expected in this promising field to generate "real-world evidence.", Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (© 2023 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Introduction: The educational and professional lives of everyone have significantly been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Many courses and meetings traditionally structured and organized as face-to-face events have been transformed into virtual events., Methods: We report on the experience of G.Re.T.A. Fondazione in organizing international conferences, webinars, and masterclasses on oncoplastic and aesthetic breast surgery before, during, and after the pandemic., Results: The organization of the meetings as online or hybrid events allowed to maintain a high number of participants with numbers being in line with those achieved in the traditional face-to-face events or even showing an increased number of participants, in particular from countries not traditionally involved such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, India, and Russian Federation., Discussion: We think that the hybrid modality is likely to become a gold standard, even though purely online meetings will still survive in the post-pandemic era. Webinars are frugal and highly efficient events that can easily reach a worldwide audience with acceptable interaction., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (© 2023 S. Karger AG, Basel.)

Importance: Improvement in clinical understanding of the priorities of patients with breast cancer (BC) regarding postoperative aesthetic outcomes (AOs) is needed., Objective: To assess expert panel and computerized evaluation modalities against patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs), the gold standard of AO assessment, in patients after surgical management of BC., Data Sources: Embase, MEDLINE, PsycINFO, PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, the World Health Organization International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, and ClinicalTrials.gov were interrogated from inception through August 5, 2022. Search terms included breast conserving AND aesthetic outcome AND breast cancer. Ten observational studies were eligible for inclusion, with the earliest date of database collection on December 15, 2022., Study Selection: Studies with at least 1 pairwise comparison (PROM vs expert panel or PROM vs computerized evaluation with Breast Cancer Conservation Treatment cosmetic results [BCCT.core] software) were considered eligible if they included patients who received BC treatment with curative intent. Studies reporting solely on risk reduction or benign surgical procedures were excluded to ensure transitivity., Data Extraction and Synthesis: Two independent reviewers extracted study data with an independent cross-check from a third reviewer. The quality of included observational studies was assessed using the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale, and the level of evidence quality was assessed using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation tool. Confidence in network meta-analysis results was analyzed with the Confidence in Network Meta-analysis semiautomated tool. Effect size was reported using random-effects odds ratios (ORs) and cumulative ratios of ORs with 95% credibility intervals (CrIs)., Main Outcomes and Measures: The primary outcome of this network meta-analysis was modality (expert panel or computer software) discordance from PROMs. Four-point Likert responses across PROMs, expert panel assessment, and BCCT.core evaluation of AOs were assessed., Results: A total of 10 observational studies including 3083 patients (median [IQR] age, 59 [50-60] years; median [range] follow-up, 39.0 [22.5-80.5] months) with reported AOs were assessed and homogenized in 4 distinct Likert response groups (excellent, very good, satisfactory, and bad). Overall network incoherence was low (χ22 = 0.35; P = .83). Overall, panel and software modalities graded AO outcomes worse than PROMs. Specifically, for excellent vs all other responses, the panel to PROM ratio of ORs was 0.30 (95% CrI, 0.17-0.53; I2 = 86%) and the BCCT.core to PROM ratio of ORs was 0.28 (95% CrI, 0.13-0.59; I2 = 95%), while the BCCT.core to panel ratio of ORs was 0.93 (95% CrI, 0.46-1.88; I2 = 88%)., Conclusions and Relevance: In this study, patients scored AOs higher than both expert panels and computer software. Standardization and supplementation of expert panel and software AO tools with racially, ethnically, and culturally inclusive PROMs is needed to improve clinical evaluation of the journey of patients with BC and to prioritize components of therapeutic outcomes.

Acellular dermal matrices (ADMs) entered the market in the early 2000s and their use has increased thereafter. Several retrospective cohort studies and single surgeon series reported benefits with the use of ADMs. However, robust evidence supporting these advantages is lacking. There is the need to define the role for ADMs in implant-based breast reconstruction (IBBR) after mastectomy., Methods: A panel of world-renowned breast specialists was convened to evaluate evidence, express personal viewpoints, and establish recommendation for the use of ADMs for subpectoral one-/two-stage IBBR (compared with no ADM use) for adult women undergoing mastectomy for breast cancer treatment or risk reduction using the Grading of Recommendations, Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) approach., Results: Based on the voting outcome, the following recommendation emerged as a consensus statement: the panel members suggest subpectoral one- or two-stage IBBR either with ADMs or without ADMs for adult women undergoing mastectomy for breast cancer treatment or risk reduction (with very low certainty of evidence)., Conclusions: The systematic review has revealed a very low certainty of evidence for most of the important outcomes in ADM-assisted IBBR and the absence of standard tools for evaluating clinical outcomes. Forty-five percent of panel members expressed a conditional recommendation either in favor of or against the use of ADMs in subpectoral one- or two-stages IBBR for adult women undergoing mastectomy for breast cancer treatment or risk reduction. Future subgroup analyses could help identify relevant clinical and pathological factors to select patients for whom one technique could be preferable to another., (Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons.)

Background: Decisions in healthcare usually rely on the goodness and completeness of data that could be coupled with heuristics to improve the decision process itself. However, this is often an incomplete process. Structured interviews denominated Delphi surveys investigate experts' opinions and solve by consensus complex matters like those underlying surgical decision-making. Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a field of study that combines computer science, artificial intelligence, and linguistics. NLP can then be used as a valuable help in building a correct context in surgical data, contributing to the amelioration of surgical decision-making., Results: We applied NLP coupled with machine learning approaches to predict the context (words) owning high accuracy from the words nearest to Delphi surveys, used as input., Conclusions: The proposed methodology has increased the usefulness of Delphi surveys favoring the extraction of keywords that can represent a specific clinical context. It permits the characterization of the clinical context suggesting words for the evaluation process of the data., (© 2022. The Author(s).)

Aim: Demand for nipple- and skin- sparing mastectomy (NSM/SSM) with immediate breast reconstruction (BR) has increased at the same time as indications for post-mastectomy radiation therapy (PMRT) have broadened. The aim of the Oncoplastic Breast Consortium initiative was to address relevant questions arising with this clinically challenging scenario., Methods: A large global panel of oncologic, oncoplastic and reconstructive breast surgeons, patient advocates and radiation oncologists developed recommendations for clinical practice in an iterative process based on the principles of Delphi methodology., Results: The panel agreed that surgical technique for NSM/SSM should not be formally modified when PMRT is planned with preference for autologous over implant-based BR due to lower risk of long-term complications and support for immediate and delayed-immediate reconstructive approaches. Nevertheless, it was strongly believed that PMRT is not an absolute contraindication for implant-based or other types of BR, but no specific recommendations regarding implant positioning, use of mesh or timing were made due to absence of high-quality evidence. The panel endorsed use of patient-reported outcomes in clinical practice. It was acknowledged that the shape and size of reconstructed breasts can hinder radiotherapy planning and attention to details of PMRT techniques is important in determining aesthetic outcomes after immediate BR., Conclusions: The panel endorsed the need for prospective, ideally randomised phase III studies and for surgical and radiation oncology teams to work together for determination of optimal sequencing and techniques for PMRT for each patient in the context of BR., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Breast Implant Associated-Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (BIA-ALCL) is a distinctive type of T-cell lymphoma arising around breast implants. We performed a review of the existing literature with the aim of providing an evidence-based overview of the available data on BIA-ALCL with a standardized evaluation of the quality of the studies and investigating the potential association between textured breast implants and BIA-ALCL.We analyzed the literature reporting estimates of relative or absolute risks of BIA-ALCL in case-control, cohort studies and case series studies. The total number of BIA-ALCL cases reported in literature is very low. Furthermore, most of the reported cases have been reported in case-control studies or case series. This means that our knowledge is based on a low level of evidence. Moreover, low-medium quality scores were observed in the included case series studies. In relation to the rarity of the event, better information could only derived by international cooperation to pool together data deriving from all over the world, with the clear need of better reporting patients and implant characteristics in case series and when adding data to public registries. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE IV: This journal requires that authors assign a level of evidence to each article. For a full description of these Evidence-Based Medicine ratings, please refer to the Table of Contents or the online Instructions to Authors www.springer.com/00266 ., (© 2021. Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature and International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.)

Introduction: The potential advantages of oncoplastic breast conserving surgery (BCS) have not been validated in robust studies that constitute high levels of evidence, despite oncoplastic techniques being widely adopted around the globe. There is hence the need to define the precise role of oncoplastic BCS in the treatment of early breast cancer, with consensual recommendations for clinical practice., Methods: A panel of world-renowned breast specialists was convened to evaluate evidence, express personal viewpoints and establish recommendations for the use of oncoplastic BCS as primary treatment of unifocal early stage breast cancers using the GRADE approach., Results: According to the results of the systematic review of literature, the panelists were asked to comment on the recommendation for use of oncoplastic BCS for treatment of operable breast cancer that is suitable for breast conserving surgery, with the GRADE approach. Based on the voting outcome, the following recommendation emerged as a consensus statement: Oncoplastic breast conserving surgery should be recommended versus standard breast conserving surgery for the treatment of operable breast cancer in adult women who are suitable candidates for breast conserving surgery (with very low certainty of evidence)., Discussion: This review has revealed a low level of evidence for most of the important outcomes in oncoplastic surgery with lack of any randomized data and absence of standard tools for evaluation of clinical outcomes and especially patients' values. Despite areas of controversy, about one-third (36%) of panel members expressed a strong recommendation in support of oncoplastic BCS. Presumably, this reflects a synthesis of views on the relative complexity of these techniques, associated complications, impact on quality of life and costs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None of the authors have conflicts of interest to disclose., (Copyright © 2021 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Summary: The authors reviewed the available evidence on revision surgery following implant-based breast surgery with the aim of investigating whether any difference in the surgical approach should be proposed if the patient has a textured device. They included in their review 31 studies presenting different approaches for revision surgery following implant-based breast surgery (both aesthetic and reconstructive), with a level of evidence ranging from 4 to 5. None of the included studies proposed different surgical approaches for revision surgery in patients carrying textured devices. The authors conclude that no different surgical attitudes in revision surgery following implant-based breast surgery should be adopted if the patient has a textured device according to the available evidence, when a correct approach is performed to face the complication or adverse event, following a thorough preoperative study of the patient with the proper diagnostic tools., (Copyright © 2021 by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.)

Growing numbers of asymptomatic women who become aware of carrying a breast cancer gene mutation (BRCA) mutation are choosing to undergo risk-reducing bilateral mastectomies with immediate breast reconstruction. We reviewed the literature with the aim of assessing the oncological safety of nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) as a risk-reduction procedure in BRCA-mutated patients. Nine studies reporting on the incidence of primary breast cancer post NSM in asymptomatic BRCA mutated patients undergoing risk-reducing bilateral procedures met the inclusion criteria. NSM appears to be a safe option for BRCA mutation carriers from an oncological point of view, with low reported rates of new breast cancers, low rates of postoperative complications, and high levels of satisfaction and postoperative quality of life. However, larger multi-institutional studies with longer follow-up are needed to establish this procedure as the best surgical option in this setting.

Introduction: The rapid spread of COVID-19 across the globe is forcing surgical oncologists to change their daily practice. We sought to evaluate how breast surgeons are adapting their surgical activity to limit viral spread and spare hospital resources., Methods: A panel of 12 breast surgeons from the most affected regions of the world convened a virtual meeting on April 7, 2020, to discuss the changes in their local surgical practice during the COVID-19 pandemic. Similarly, a Web-based poll based was created to evaluate changes in surgical practice among breast surgeons from several countries., Results: The virtual meeting showed that distinct countries and regions were experiencing different phases of the pandemic. Surgical priority was given to patients with aggressive disease not candidate for primary systemic therapy, those with progressive disease under neoadjuvant systemic therapy, and patients who have finished neoadjuvant therapy. One hundred breast surgeons filled out the poll. The trend showed reductions in operating room schedules, indications for surgery, and consultations, with an increasingly restrictive approach to elective surgery with worsening of the pandemic., Conclusion: The COVID-19 emergency should not compromise treatment of a potentially lethal disease such as breast cancer. Our results reveal that physicians are instinctively reluctant to abandon conventional standards of care when possible. However, as the situation deteriorates, alternative strategies of de-escalation are being adopted., Implications for Practice: This study aimed to characterize how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting breast cancer surgery and which strategies are being adopted to cope with the situation., (© 2020 AlphaMed Press.)

Background: Autologous fat grafting has broad applications in reconstructive and aesthetic breast surgery as a natural filler and for its regenerative purposes. Despite the widespread use of fat grafting, there remains no shared consensus on what constitutes the optimal fat grafting technique and its oncological safety. For this reason, the authors of this study have organized a Survey and an International Consensus Conference that was held at the Aesthetic Breast Meeting in Milan (December 15, 2018)., Methods: All studies on fat grafting, both for breast aesthetic and reconstructive purposes, were electronically screened. The literature review led to 17 "key questions" that were used for the Survey. The authors prepared a set of 10 "key statements" that have been discussed in a dedicated face-to-face session during the meeting., Results: The 10 key statements addressed all the most debated topics on fat grafting of the breast. Levels of evidence for the key statements ranged from III to IV with 2 statements (20%) supported by a level of evidence III and 6 statements (60%) by level of evidence IV. Overall consensus was reached for 2 statements (20%) with >75% agreement reached for 7 statements., Conclusions: The survey demonstrated a diversity of opinion and attitude among the panelists with regard to technique. Clear recommendations for evidence-based clinical practice for fat grafting use both in aesthetic and reconstructive breast surgery could not be defined due to the scarcity of level 1 or 2 studies., (Copyright © 2019 The Authors. Published by Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. on behalf of The American Society of Plastic Surgeons.)

Surgical treatment of breast cancer has changed during the last few decades. Long-term evaluation of several studies performed worldwide have confirmed that conservative surgery (CS) and radical mastectomy have similar survival rates. Due to CS being the gold standard for treatment for most women with breast cancer, advances in materials, mastectomy and reconstructive surgery techniques, now give us the possibility to perform on our patients a great outcome with oncological security. Both advances, in plastic and oncologic surgery, created a new discipline, called oncoplastic breast surgery, that allow surgeons to resect large breast specimens preventing subsequent deformities with the correct previous planning. This is particularly important when more than 30% of the breast volume will be resected because it allows for planning CS depending on the site of the lesion and for establishing the limits between CS and mastectomy., Competing Interests: Conflicts of Interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare., (2019 Gland Surgery. All rights reserved.)

Background: Breast shape is defined utilizing mainly qualitative assessment (full, flat, ptotic) or estimates, such as volume or distances between reference points, that cannot describe it reliably., Objectives: The authors quantitatively described breast shape with two parameters derived from a statistical methodology denominated by principal component analysis (PCA)., Methods: The authors created a heterogeneous dataset of breast shapes acquired with a commercial infrared 3-dimensional scanner on which PCA was performed. The authors plotted on a Cartesian plane the two highest values of PCA for each breast (principal components 1 and 2). Testing of the methodology on a preoperative and posttreatment surgical case and test-retest was performed by two operators., Results: The first two principal components derived from PCA characterize the shape of the breast included in the dataset. The test-retest demonstrated that different operators obtain very similar values of PCA. The system is also able to identify major changes in the preoperative and posttreatment stages of a two-stage reconstruction. Even minor changes were correctly detected by the system., Conclusions: This methodology can reliably describe the shape of a breast. An expert operator and a newly trained operator can reach similar results in a test/re-testing validation. Once developed and after further validation, this methodology could be employed as a good tool for outcome evaluation, auditing, and benchmarking.

Purpose: Indications for nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) have broadened to include the risk reducing setting and locally advanced tumors, which resulted in a dramatic increase in the use of NSM. The Oncoplastic Breast Consortium consensus conference on NSM and immediate reconstruction was held to address a variety of questions in clinical practice and research based on published evidence and expert panel opinion., Methods: The panel consisted of 44 breast surgeons from 14 countries across four continents with a background in gynecology, general or reconstructive surgery and a practice dedicated to breast cancer, as well as a patient advocate. Panelists presented evidence summaries relating to each topic for debate during the in-person consensus conference. The iterative process in question development, voting, and wording of the recommendations followed the modified Delphi methodology., Results: Consensus recommendations were reached in 35, majority recommendations in 24, and no recommendations in the remaining 12 questions. The panel acknowledged the need for standardization of various aspects of NSM and immediate reconstruction. It endorsed several oncological contraindications to the preservation of the skin and nipple. Furthermore, it recommended inclusion of patients in prospective registries and routine assessment of patient-reported outcomes. Considerable heterogeneity in breast reconstruction practice became obvious during the conference., Conclusions: In case of conflicting or missing evidence to guide treatment, the consensus conference revealed substantial disagreement in expert panel opinion, which, among others, supports the need for a randomized trial to evaluate the safest and most efficacious reconstruction techniques.