A great deal of research has been devoted to the treatment of cancer in the last 60 years. High tech treatments are now being developed which can increase survival rates and reduce the terrible side effects of the highly toxic drugs and radiation which are the foundations of most medical cancer treatments. New surgical techniques including arthroscopic have greatly aided doctors in removing tumors. Indeed, medical science has every reason to be both proud and optimistic about the prospects of cancer treatment in the 21st Century.

The operation is carried out on an outpatient basis. An implant is placed through an incision, under the breast tissue or under the muscle. The incision can be made under the breast, around the nipple or in the armpit. It generally takes two to three hours to complete the entire procedure. A breast implant is composed of an outer shell filled with saline (salt water) or silicon gel. The outer surface may be smooth or textured, and implants come in various shapes to meet the individual woman's needs.

Take breast cancer. According to recent research one out of every eight women will suffer breast cancer in her lifetime. 20 years ago that figure was one in ten. To describe this as a growing epidemic is a serious understatement. But it seems to me that not enough doctors and scientists are asking "why breast cancer?"

Based on current experience, the implants should last for many years. However, since no breast implants have been implanted for a full life span, it is impossible to give an unequivocal statement in this regard.

So I went straight to that practice. I could not get Dr. Robert Allen (who pioneered the procedure), without waiting longer than I wanted to, so I went with his partner, Dr. Levine. Overall, I am happy with the results. The shape of the breast itself is great, and the fat transfer was successful, which is no small thing in itself. Unfortunately, the nipple/areola did not fare well, due to a blood clot underneath it after surgery, which was not caught. Dr. Levine wanted to go ahead and remove the nipple/areola but I was determined to keep it and see what happened. This meant letting the area die off to the extent that it would from the lack of circulation, and then see what was left. Now, a year later, the nipple itself is gone, and the areola looks pretty scarred up, but I am hopeful that with tattooing to make the scarred areola match the color of the other side, and with a reconstructed nipple, that it will end up looking good. The abdominal scar, on the other hand, is 20" long and there is no other way to describe it but ugly, although I hope it will improve as the scar fades.

Sensory changes can occur resulting in numbness or discomfort, and while these symptoms are usually not long-standing or severe, they can be in some cases. Temporary sensory changes are common and usually last 2 to 6 months. No studies have indicated that implants interfere with nursing.

The natural tissue capsule that forms around the implant within the body can sometimes thicken or contract causing unnatural firmness or shape to the breast. This condition is called "capsular contracture". This is a very uncommon complication which can be reduced by exercises. If it occurs open or closed capsulotomy may be required.

The research bears out this theory. Among the risk factors that predict higher rates of breast cancer we find some interesting statistics. If a woman waits till her thirties to have children, if she does not breast feed them, if she doesn't have any children, all of these factors increase a woman's statistical probability of getting breast cancer. Ask yourself this question: If you were a breast, and no one ever paid any attention to you, no one ever let you fulfill your purpose, what would you do?

If a lumpectomy is offered as a treatment, seriously consider exhausting that option first, before jumping into a mastectomy. In many cases, there is no difference in survival rate between the two, and your doctor can better advise you if this may be true in your case. As I mentioned above, the margin around the cancer is a major factor. Had I gone with an additional lumpectomy, I would have very little evidence today that anything had ever happened. One big difference between most lumpectomies and a mastectomy is that there is no feeling left in the breast after a mastectomy, which I have found very disappointing. After the lumpectomy, I still had full feeling. Sometimes sensation will return after a mastectomy, at least partially. With my larger breast, I doubt I will ever have much feeling, and this is a change in the quality of life that I will live with for a long time. I avoided radiation by having the mastectomy, but this was the only real benefit as far as I was concerned, although an important one. Radiation is generally a requirement when having a lumpectomy.

The breast normally covers a muscle on the chest wall called the pectoralis muscle. Breast implants can be placed above or below this muscle. When implants are placed below the muscle, it is called a sub muscular placement or a sub pectoral placement. When the implant is placed above the muscle, it is called a sub glandular or sub mammary placement, meaning that it's below the mammary gland.