Lipomodelling for correction of breast conservative treatment sequelae. Medicolegal aspects. Expert opinion on five problematic clinical cases

• Published in: Annales de chirurgie plastique et esthétique Vol. 53; no. 2; pp. 190 - 198
• Main Authors: Gosset, J, Flageul, G, Toussoun, G, Guérin, N, Tourasse, C, Delay, E
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: French
• Published: France 01-04-2008
• Subjects: Breast Neoplasms - surgery; Expert Testimony; Female; France; Humans; Mammaplasty - legislation & jurisprudence; Mammaplasty - methods; Mastectomy - adverse effects; Middle Aged; Postoperative Complications - etiology; Postoperative Complications - surgery; Subcutaneous Fat - transplantation; France
• ISSN: 1768-319X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.anplas.2007.09.001

In our unit, breast cancer patients suffering mild sequelae of conservative cancer treatment receive fat transfer (lipomodelling), following a precise protocol, based on mammographic and ultrasound examinations and MRI. Available data do not seem to indicate any deleterious impact on patient outcome, notably in view of radiological images, but recurrence (or rather occurrence of new ipsilateral or contralateral cancer) is frequent. The correlation between new or recurrent breast cancer and lipomodelling is high; misinterpretations are possible and frequently arise. The present paper is a description of five complex clinical cases and a discussion of the medicolegal issues that may possibly arise; it also provides tentative expert evaluation of the cases. Clinical findings are reported and analyzed. The second step is a discussion of the radiological impact of lipomodelling, and of the problems caused by the transfer of potentially malignant cells when no preoperative diagnosis of recurrence is made; the morphological and esthetic benefits of the method are described, as well as the potential beneficial impact of fat transfer, notably associated with lower breast density and injections of fat stem cells. Our conclusion is that specialized radiologists, as well as plastic surgery and oncology experts should address the question of fat transfer in operated breast cancer patients and give their reasoned opinion about potentially litigious cases. This would help minimize or solve the conflicts between patients, doctors and experts. Establishing common ground between the different stakeholders would allow the development of the technique, as lipomodelling is, according to our experience, a tremendous advance in the treatment of sequelae from conservative breast cancer surgery.