I asked my wife, a double board certified general&plastic surgeon that has worked as both a breast surgeon, breast surgical oncologist, and plastic surgeon, cur

I asked my wife, a double board certified general&plastic surgeon that has worked as both a breast surgeon, breast surgical oncologist, and plastic surgeon, currently with a plastics practice that is 75% reconstructive, and 25% cosmetic to comment on this article. >FIDE’s statement leans heavily on the concept of post-breast cancer reconstructions in order to legitimize this sponsorship, with managing director Dana Reizniece-Ozola providing some statistics on the prevalence of breast cancer in women: one in eight, with fewer than 10% of those electing to undergo reconstructive surgery afterwards. The spectre of breast cancer is real and terrible. However, FIDE’s focus on post-cancer reconstructions is an unrepresentative portrait of reality: around 75% of breast augmentations are performed for cosmetic reasons. "When it comes to surgical removal of cancer, there are two mains methods: a lumpectomy, or a mastectomy. A small lumpectomy does not require implants, a large lumpectomy may, but this is a patient's decision. Mastectomies require breast reconstruction roughly 80% with implants and 20% by autologous tissue harvesting such as a deep inferior epigastric perforator artery (DIEP), a breast-reconstruction using stomach tissue that also doubles as a tummy tuck. By law in the US, doctors are required to offer breast reconstruction. There is a method of doing a closure of a mastectomy without implant, using a Skin-Sparing Wise pattern internal mammary perforator (SWIM), also known as the Goldilocks procedure, but women rarely opt for it (3-5% of the time) in her practice." "Despite the fact that our capability to diagnose is improving, women are regularly opting for mastectomies instead of lumpectomies for a number of reasons. Most surgeons or hospitals, not patients, choose the implant company, for logistical reasons, or simply experience with that brand. Mentor, Allergan, and Sientra are the FDA approved implant companies in the US. Because congenital defects happen, fixing them may be considered cosmetic, when it is bringing a patient to a normal appearance." [1] https://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/surgery/reconstruction/types/autologous/diep https://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/surgery/reconstructio...