Esthetic outcomes of using latissimus dorsi flap for breast reconstruction after breast-conserving surgery

Background Lesion location and the volume of breast excised in correlation to the total breast volume are cornerstone issues in oncoplastic surgery after surgical breast-conserving surgery affecting the esthetic management plan and protocol implemented.Aim of the study Verifying the value of using latissimus dorsi (LD) myocutaneous flaps in secondary breast reconstruction after surgical breast conservation.Patients and methods A total of 73 cases that have undergone unilateral surgical breast conservation and postoperative radiotherapy, subsequently followed by secondary reconstruction of the breast using the latissmus dorsi as a myocutaneous flap at Ain Shams University Hospital and Bahya Hospital of Breast Cancer between January 2015 and January 2018.Results Binary logistic regression statistical analysis have shown that preoperative overall esthetic score was the only significant predictor of having postoperative excellent/very good esthetic score (P<0.005). Neither age, BMI, location of the tumor, nor duration between surgical breast conservation and LD myocutaneous flap was statistically significantly correlated with postoperative esthetic outcomes.Conclusion The current research study verifies the usefulness of LD flap in the restoration of adequate esthetic outcomes required after surgical conservative manner of breast tumor removal; however racial, ethnic, and anatomical differences should be considered in future research