After radiation how long should I wait for reconstruction?

There is NO reason to wait for a year before having breast reconstruction. For best results we encourage you to start the reconstruction immediately after radiation is completed. Radiation disrupts the DNA of cancer cells and its therapeutic effect on killing cancer is immediate. However, radiation treatment also causes a lot of inflammation. The result of inflammation is scar tissue that becomes abnormally stiff. Our experience confirms the theory and the published literature that bringing in healthy fat graft will soothe the radiation burn and damage. The newly interposed healthy fat will soften the hard fibrous scar tissue. We therefore encourage you to have the first stage of your breast reconstruction immediately after you complete your radiation treatment and before the fibrosis sets in.