Effect of Radiation and Its Timing on Breast Reconstruction in Chinese Patients

In breast cancer patients, post-operative radiation therapy is an important component in breast cancer management. However, in the context of breast reconstruction, radiation can have adverse effect as it increases the rate of fat necrosis and leads to fibrosis/ capsular contracture in the reconstructed breast mounds. It is therefore necessary to investigate the best timing for breast reconstruction, especially in those patients which post-operative radiation is required, which does not interfere with overall breast cancer treatment while produces the best surgical, aesthetic and psychological outcome. Most studies in this field are retrospective, and studies on Chinese cohort are also rare. This multi-center prospectively designed clinical trial will include several medical centers across China. The investigators will allocate the patients into three arms based on the status and sequence of radiation and breast reconstruction, and will further stratify the groups based on the different approaches of reconstruction (autologous/ prosthetic based). Both objective and subjective (patient oriented) methods will be employed to make evaluations involving surgical, aesthetic, and psychological outcomes.