Reconstructive Surgery After Cancer

Many cancers can damage the form and function of the body. The physicians of the Plastic Surgery Center at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin help cancer patients feel whole.

Integral Part of Complete Cancer Care

Complete cancer care includes more than just medical treatment to fight the disease. Many patients also need surgery to repair the effects of their disease.

The physicians of the Plastic Surgery Center are an integral part of the Clinical Cancer Center. Using a variety of standard and advanced surgical techniques, they are able to reconstruct any part of the body damaged by cancer. In many cases, they can restore not only form and appearance, but function as well. Cancer patients are better able to return to life after treatment feeling confident and capable.

Cancer-Related Reconstruction

For many forms of cancer, tumor removal and treatment can result in a physical deficit. The physicians of the Plastic Surgery Center are skilled at repairing these deficits using the latest surgical techniques. Because of their extensive experience in cosmetic surgery, the surgeons are able to achieve a very natural-looking appearance for most patients.

Breast Reconstruction

Plastic surgeons in the program are skilled in several techniques that use abdominal tissue to reconstruct a breast following mastectomy. These techniques provide better results in a more predictable way than other approaches. The Plastic Surgery Center is one of a handful of centers nationwide that perform these advanced procedures. 

Learn more about TRAM, DIEP and SIEA Flap for Breast Reconstruction

Deficits Left by Soft Tissue Tumors

The surgical removal of a soft tissue sarcoma can result in a large deficit. Plastic surgeons work with cancer surgeons who remove the tumor and reconstruct the defect by taking tissue from another part of the body.

Learn more about the Sarcoma Program

Skull and Facial Restoration

Surgeons in the program use several techniques to repair defects caused by head and neck cancers. For example, a cancer requiring removal of the jaw can be reconstructed using bone from a patient’s leg. 

Learn more about the Head and Neck Cancer Program

Skin Cancer Services

Removing a melanoma often requires a very wide resection of skin. Plastic surgeons in the Plastic Surgery Center use skin graft techniques to repair the skin defect and restore normal appearance. 

Learn more about the Skin Cancer Program

Treating the Side Effects of Care

Radiation therapy can negatively affect healthy tissue, sometimes resulting in a loss of tissue. Chemotherapy treatments that get out of a vein into surrounding tissue can also lead to local damage of healthy tissues. The Plastic Surgery Center plays a key role in treating and restoring these damaged areas.

Learn more about the Plastic Surgery Center

Psychologists are Unique Resource

The Plastic Surgery Center at Froedtert & the Medical College is the only such center in the country that includes on-staff psychological support. The team’s two psychologists help cancer patients cope with issues such as body image and loss of a body part.

Reconstruction Is Part of Treatment Plan

Experts in the Plastic Surgery Center are involved in treatment planning for cancer patients from early visits. They work closely with each patient’s surgical, medical and radiation oncologists to understand treatment strategy and fashion a reconstructive plan that is customized to the patient’s needs.

Under the Clinical Cancer Center’s Hub Model of care, plastic surgeons are integrated into each patient’s disease-specific care team. For patients, the benefit is a seamless care experience that weaves together surgical procedures to remove cancer, radiation and medical therapies, reconstructive surgery and the full range of support services.