DIEP (deep inferior epigastric perforators) flap surgery is a cutting-edge breast reconstruction procedure that uses a flap of complete tissue - blood vessels (perforators), skin and fat - from a woman's lower abdomen as donor tissue. The DIEP flap is nicknamed the “tummy tuck flap”, utilizing the skin and fatty tissue that would typically be taken and discarded during a tummy tuck operation (abdominoplasty). The tissue is harvested with its feeding blood vessels and then transferred to the chest wall to replace the diseased breast tissue that is removed during a nipple sparing or skin sparing mastectomy.
The use of the patient’s own natural body tissues to perform the reconstruction eliminates the risks of foreign body reaction or scarring that can sometimes be seen with implant reconstructions. It is ideal for younger patients with breast cancer, as it eliminates the risk of the implant wearing out or needing to be replaced as the patient ages.
Ideal patients for a DIEP flap reconstruction include: newly diagnosed breast cancer patients, patients with a BRCA mutation who are extremely high risk for the future development of breast cancer, patients who have had previous breast cancer and radiation, and patients who had a previous mastectomy and implant reconstruction with sub-optimal cosmetic results.
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Memorial Hospital is a not-for-profit medical complex in Gulfport, Mississippi, jointly owned by the City of Gulfport and Harrison County. Memorial's mission is Building a Healthier Community. Memorial is one of the most comprehensive healthcare systems in the state, licensed for 328 beds, including a state-designated Level II Trauma Center, three nursing centers, three outpatient surgery centers, satellite outpatient diagnostic and rehabilitation centers and more than 95 Memorial Physician Clinics.
Memorial offers several of the region's most comprehensive clinical programs, such as emergency medicine; women and children services; orthopedic services; cardiovascular services; neurosciences and oncology. Additionally, Memorial provides medical specialties unique to the coast which include a Level III Neonatal ICU and Mississippi's first nationally certified Primary Stroke Center. Memorial offers 3D imaging and advanced surgical techniques, including the robotic assisted Specialty Surgery System. Memorial is accredited by The Joint Commission, the Commission on Cancer, the College of American Pathologists and the American College of Radiology.