Chest wall reconstruction and advanced disease

Vertical Rectus Abdominis Myocutaneous Flap for Reconstruction of Forequarter Amputation Defect after Shoulder Soft Tissue Sarcoma Resection: Technical Consideration

Forequarter amputations in advanced local malignancy or trauma cases often leave a large defect that is challenging to reconstruct. Options for defect closure are varied. A vertical rectus abdominis myocutaneous (VRAM) flap could be an alternative to close a significantly large defect, which is relatively easier than the more technically demanding free flap. This case presents a 64-year-old man with a soft tissue sarcoma in the left shoulder that was treated by forequarter amputation and subsequent defect closure using a VRAM flap. The VRAM flap was initially used to reconstruct the chest and abdominal walls. There have been no reported uses for the shoulder defect. The repair site defect was viable even with a less aesthetic donor site, and all of the defects were closed without any signs of infection. The VRAM flap is a good option for a large defect closure at the shoulder region, particularly after forequarter amputation.

Chest wall resection and reconstruction for recurrent breast cancer - A multidisciplinary approach

BACKGROUND

Despite therapeutic advances in the management of breast cancer, a significant number of patients present with locoregional recurrence. Treatment with hormonal, chemo or radiotherapy remains standard in such cases. However, in selected patients of recurrent breast cancer involving chest wall, multidisciplinary surgical approach could be considered.

METHODS

Between 2010 and 2018, 21 patients with recurrent breast cancer, involving chest wall, were treated at a tertiary care center with resection and reconstruction. The mean age of the patients was 55 years (22-77 years).

RESULTS

The median interval from first breast resection to chest wall resection (CWR) for recurrent disease was 6 years (1-24 years). Eighteen patients underwent bony resection and 3 patients required extensive soft tissue resection. Complete resection was achieved in 90% of patients. All patients had chest wall reconstruction. There was no in-hospital mortality. During follow-up, 8 patients died, of which 7 were due to distant metastases. The 1 year and 3-year overall survival were 90% (95% CI 66-97) and 61% (95% CI 31-81) respectively. The disease-free survival at 1 and 3 years was the same at 70% (95% CI 45-86). At a mean follow up of 23 months, the average survival in patients operated for local recurrence is 51.7 months (95% CI 37.7-65.7) and 24.5 months (95% CI 7.3-41.7) for patients with distant metastatic recurrence.

CONCLUSION

A multidisciplinary oncoplastic approach for recurrent breast cancer, which includes chest wall resection and reconstruction is a useful adjunct in selected group of patients. This improves local disease control, symptoms and possibly disease-free survival.

Chest Wall Resection for Recurrent Breast Cancer in the Modern Era: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

To review the literature on chest wall resection for recurrent breast cancer and evaluate overall survival (OS) and quality-of-life (QOL) outcomes.

BACKGROUND

Full-thickness chest wall resection for recurrent breast cancer is controversial, as historically these recurrences have been thought of as a harbinger of systemic disease.

METHODS

A systematic search in MEDLINE, EMBASE, and Cochrane CENTRAL identified 48 eligible studies, all retrospective, accounting for 1305 patients. The review is reported following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Primary end points were patient-centered QOL outcomes and OS; secondary outcomes included disease-free survival (DFS) and 30-day morbidity. Risk of bias was assessed using the Methodological Index for Non-Randomized Studies instrument and the Oxford Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine's levels of evidence tool. Random-effects meta-analysis was used to create pooled estimates. Meta-regressions and sensitivity analyses were used to explore study heterogeneity by age, year of publication, risk of bias, and surgical intent (curative vs palliative).

RESULTS

Studies consistently reported excellent OS and DFS in properly selected patients. Pooled estimates for 5-year OS in all studies and those from the past 15 years were 40.8% [95% confidence interval (CI) 35.2-46.7) and 43.1% (95% CI 35.8-50.7), whereas pooled 5-year DFS was 27.1% (95% CI 16.6-41.0). Eight studies reported excellent outcomes related to QOL. Mortality was consistently low (<1%) and 30-day pooled morbidity was 20.2% (95% CI 15.3%-26.3%). Study quality varied, and risk of selection bias in included studies was high.

CONCLUSIONS

Full-thickness chest wall resection can be performed with excellent survival and low morbidity. Few studies report on QOL; prospective studies should focus on patient-centered outcomes in this population.

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy for a refractory skin ulcer after radical mastectomy and radiation therapy: a case report

Background

Radiation therapy is performed as an adjuvant therapy when indicated following surgical resection of malignant tumors. However, radiation exposure induces acute or chronic dermatitis, depending on the radiation dose, interval, tissue volume, or irradiated area of the body. Radiation-induced skin ulcers and osteomyelitis of the underlying bone are intractable late-stage complications of radiation therapy, and often require reconstructive surgery to cover exposed tissue. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy has been suggested as a treatment for delayed radiation injury with soft tissue and bony necrosis.

Case presentation

A 74-year-old Japanese female underwent left radical mastectomy for breast cancer (T3N3M0, stage IIIB) in 1987. Radiation therapy was initiated 6 weeks after the surgery. She received telecobalt-60 in a total dose of 50 Gy with 25 fractions to the left supraclavicular, parasternal and left axillary regions, and electron treatment (9 MeV) in a total dose of 50 Gy in 25 fractions to the left chest wall. After irradiation, her skin became thinner and more fragile on the left chest wall, but no severe infections were observed. She noticed a small ulcer that repeatedly healed and recurred in 2000. She visited the hospital where she received radiation therapy and was treated for a skin ulcer on the left chest wall in December 2012. A fistula developed and then pus was discharged in January 2013. She was referred to the hyperbaric medical center in February 2013, and the fistula (1.5 × 3 cm) with pus discharge was observed. She was diagnosed with a late-onset radiation-induced skin ulcer that developed 25 years after radical mastectomy. HBO₂ (2.5 atmospheres absolute with 100% oxygen for 60 minutes) was indicated for the refractory ulcer and osteomyelitis of the ribs. The patient was treated with HBO₂ a total of 101 times over the course of 1 year and completely recovered.

Conclusions

Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can be performed safely for even more than 100 sessions in patients with radiation-induced skin ulcers and osteomyelitis. Hyperbaric oxygen therapy can be considered as an alternative, conservative treatment when surgical resection for late-onset, radiation-induced skin ulcers is not indicated because of fragile skin in the irradiated areas.

A Novel Clinical Application of the Classical Bakamjian Flap in the Reconstruction of a Sternal Chondrosarcoma Defect

The deltopectoral flap also called the Bakamjian flap was originally described as a two-stage procedure for pharygoesophageal reconstruction following laryngopharyngectomy. It became the "workhorse" flap for head and neck reconstruction in the 1960s, but its popularity gradually faded with the introduction of pedicled myocutaneous flaps and subsequently microvascular free flaps. However, the technical simplicity of raising the Bakamjian flap along with its predictable vascular supply has ensured that the flap continues to remain as a time-tested salvage option in head and neck reconstruction. The use of this flap for sternal reconstruction, to the best of our knowledge, has not been described before. We present a rare case of a primary sternal chondrosarcoma and discuss its management challenges and also present, possibly for the first time, a novel application for the well-described Bakamjian flap in this setting as a single-stage procedure.

Thoracic Wall Reconstruction after Tumor Resection

Introduction

Surgical treatment of malignant thoracic wall tumors represents a formidable challenge. In particular, locally advanced tumors that have already infiltrated critical anatomic structures are associated with a high surgical morbidity and can result in full-thickness defects of the thoracic wall. Plastic surgery can reduce this surgical morbidity by reconstructing the thoracic wall through various tissue transfer techniques. Sufficient soft-tissue reconstruction of the thoracic wall improves quality of life and mitigates functional impairment after extensive resection. The aim of this article is to illustrate the various plastic surgery treatment options in the multimodal therapy of patients with malignant thoracic wall tumors.

Materials and methods

This article is based on a review of the current literature and the evaluation of a patient database.

Results

Several plastic surgical treatment options can be implemented in the curative and palliative therapy of patients with malignant solid tumors of the chest wall. Large soft-tissue defects after tumor resection can be covered by local, pedicled, or free flaps. In cases of large full-thickness defects, flaps can be combined with polypropylene mesh to improve chest wall stability and to maintain pulmonary function. The success of modern medicine has resulted in an increasing number of patients with prolonged survival suffering from locally advanced tumors that can be painful, malodorous, or prone to bleeding. Resection of these tumors followed by thoracic wall reconstruction with viable tissue can substantially enhance the quality of life of these patients.

Discussion

In curative treatment regimens, chest wall reconstruction enables complete resection of locally advanced tumors and subsequent adjuvant radiotherapy. In palliative disease treatment, plastic surgical techniques of thoracic wall reconstruction provide palliation of tumor-associated morbidity and can therefore improve patients’ quality of life.

Trends in Immediate Postmastectomy Breast Reconstruction in the United Kingdom

Background:

The study aimed to evaluate local and national trends in immediate breast reconstruction (IBR) using the national English administrative records, Hospital Episode Statistics. Our prediction was an increase in implant-only and free flap procedures and a decline in latissimus flap reconstructions.

Methods:

Data from an oncoplastic center were interrogated to derive numbers of implant-only, autologous latissimus dorsi (LD), LD-assisted, and autologous pedicled or free flap IBR procedures performed between 2004 and 2013. Similarly, Hospital Episode Statistics data were used to quantify national trends in these procedures from 1996 to 2012 using a curve fitting analysis.

Results:

National data suggest an increase in LD procedures between 1996 (n = 250) and 2002 (n = 958), a gradual rise until 2008 (n = 1398) followed by a decline until 2012 (n = 1090). As a percentage of total IBR, trends in LD flap reconstruction better fit a quadratic (R² = 0.97) than a linear function (R² = 0.63), confirming a proportional recent decline in LD flap procedures. Conversely, autologous (non-LD) flap reconstructions have increased (1996 = 0.44%; 2012 = 2.76%), whereas implant-only reconstructions have declined (1996 = 95.42%; 2012 = 84.92%). Locally, 70 implant-assisted LD procedures were performed in 2003 -2004, but only 2 were performed in 2012 to 2013.

Conclusions:

Implants are the most common IBR technique; autologous free flap procedures have increased, and pedicled LD flap procedures are in decline.

Challenging a traditional paradigm: 12-year experience with autologous free flap breast reconstruction for inflammatory breast cancer

BACKGROUND

Inflammatory breast cancer is a rare but aggressive breast cancer with an overall poor prognosis. Traditionally, reconstruction has not been offered, because of poor long-term survival, the need for multimodality treatment, and complex treatment sequencing. The authors examined the safety and feasibility of free flap breast reconstruction for inflammatory breast cancer.

METHODS

A retrospective analysis of all patients who underwent reconstruction for inflammatory breast cancer from January of 2000 to December of 2012 was conducted.

RESULTS

Of 830 inflammatory breast cancer patients, 59 (7.1 percent; median age, 48 years; range, 27 to 65 years) underwent free flap reconstruction. All patients received chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Most patients (n = 52) underwent delayed reconstruction. Five patients with a history of prior partial mastectomy and irradiation developed inflammatory breast cancer and underwent immediate reconstruction following completion mastectomy. Two others underwent immediate chest wall and breast reconstruction following resection. Thirteen patients underwent bilateral reconstruction, and seven required a bipedicled abdominal flap for the unilateral mastectomy defect. Thirty-seven patients (62.7 percent) required revision of the reconstructed breast, and 29 (49.2 percent) had a contralateral balancing procedure to optimize symmetry. Complications occurred in 21 patients (35.6 percent), with one total flap loss (1.7 percent). The median length of follow-up was 43.9 months; 49 patients (83.1 percent) were alive without evidence of recurrent disease.

CONCLUSIONS

Autologous free flap breast reconstruction can be performed safely in inflammatory breast cancer patients, with acceptable complication rates and without an increased risk for flap loss. Inflammatory breast cancer should not preclude free flap breast reconstruction.

CLINICAL QUESTION/LEVEL OF EVIDENCE

Therapeutic, IV.

Reconstruction of chest wall chondrosarcoma with an anterolateral thigh free flap: An illustration of decision-making in chest wall reconstruction

INTRODUCTION

Chondrosarcomas are the most common primary chest wall malignancy. The mainstay of treatment is radical resection, which often requires chest wall reconstruction. This presents numerous challenges and more extensive defects mandate the use of microvascular free flaps. Selecting the most appropriate flap is important to the outcome of the surgery.

PRESENTATION OF CASE

A 71-year-old male presented with a large chondrocarcoma of the chest wall. The planned resection excluded use of the ipsilateral and contralateral pectoralis major flap because of size and reach limitations. The latissimus dorsi flap was deemed inappropriate on logistical grounds as well as potential vascular compromise. The patient was too thin for reconstruction using an abdominal flap. Therefore, following radical tumour resection, the defect was reconstructed with a methyl methacrylate polypropylene mesh plate for chest wall stability and an anterolateral thigh free flap in a single-stage joint cardiothoracic and plastic surgical procedure. The flap was anastomosed to the contralateral internal mammary vessels as the ipsilateral mammary vessels had been resected.

DISCUSSION

The outcome was complete resection of the tumour, no significant impact on ventilation and acceptable cosmesis.

CONCLUSION

This case demonstrates the complex decision making process required in chest wall reconstruction and the versatility of the ALT free flap. The ALT free flap ensured adequate skin cover, subsequent bulk, provided an excellent operative position, produced little loss of donor site function, and provided an acceptable cosmetic result.

Chest wall reconstruction with a latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flap via the pleural cavity

This report presents the case of a 79-year old woman who developed radionecrosis after irradiation following a radical mastectomy at the age of 50 and complicated lung adenocarcinoma in the left upper lobe. Chest wall resection and reconstruction were performed simultaneously with left upper lobectomy, and a latissimus dorsi musculocutaneous flap was used for reconstruction via the left pleural cavity after lobectomy. The flap was well adapted to the defect of the chest wall. This clinical course indicates that a transpleural musculocutaneous flap can be a reconstructive procedure for such patients showing chest wall radionecrosis complicated with an intrathoracic disease.

Simultaneous surgery of the aortic valve and sternal osteomyelitis

A 64-year-old man was referred for aortic valve replacement due to severe stenosis. He also suffered chronic sternal osteomyelitis with skin fistula subsequent to radiation therapy. Both pathologies were approached simultaneously by sternal resection, omental plasty, and valve replacement, which led to favorable primary and mid-term result.