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Researchers at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg have developed a new procedure to determine breast volume before surgery more accurately than before / Method enables more natural results after breast cancer surgery

For patients who have had to have part or all of their breast tissue removed due to breast cancer, plastic surgery reconstruction of the breast is an integral part of the treatment. In order to achieve the most natural appearance possible, the volume of the healthy and reconstructed breast should be as similar as possible. Physicians at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg have now developed a new computer model with which the volume of the breasts can be determined much more precisely than before. This allows physicians to plan the operation better, the procedure takes less time and the result corresponds even more closely to a natural appearance. The underlying study was published in the journal PLOS One on November 25, 2020.

"For many women, regaining their natural appearance after breast cancer treatment is an important step. With the new method, we can fulfill this wish even better," says PD Dr. Filip Simunovic, Senior Physician at the Department of Plastic Surgery at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg. However, women with breast deformities or breasts of uneven size can also benefit from the procedure.

In order to estimate the volume, a 3D strip light surface scan of the breasts is carried out. Until now, however, it has only been possible to calculate the volume precisely from this 3D data set inaccurately because the rear boundary of the breast, the chest wall, is not captured in the 3D scan.

Michael Göpper was able to solve this problem as part of his doctoral thesis at the Department of Plastic Surgery at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg. He established a method that is based on statistical shape models and makes it possible to estimate the posterior chest wall. "With the help of this method, we obtain a reliable and precise measurement of breast volume in our patients," says Prof. Dr. Björn Stark, Medical Director of the Department of Plastic Surgery at the Medical Center - University of Freiburg. "With the publication, plastic surgeons worldwide can now use the procedure and thus improve the treatment outcome of patients," says Stark.

Original title of the study: Improved accuracy of breast volume calculation from 3D surface imaging data using statistical shape models

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0233586

Link to the study: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0233586

Contact:
PD Dr. Filip Simunovic
Senior Physician
Department of Plastic Surgery
Medical Center - University of Freiburg
Phone: 0761 270-24010
filip.simunovic@uniklinik-freiburg.de