Eligibility for hidden-scar surgery:
- The size and location of the tumor
- Whether the tumor is contained in one part of the breast or throughout the tissue
- The size and shape of the breast
- Whether the cancer has spread to other areas of the body
How Hidden-Scar Works
Surgeons remove breast cancer two ways – taking out the portion of the breast that contains the cancerous lump in a lumpectomy, or removing all of the breast tissue in a mastectomy. Each, traditionally, leaves scars that are visible after healing.
Using Hidden-Scar techniques in a lumpectomy, a surgeon removes the cancerous tumor through incisions made in your armpit, areola or inframammary fold beneath the breast. When the incision heals, there is little or no evidence of surgery.
A nipple-sparing mastectomy is the only type of mastectomy eligible for Hidden-Scar techniques. In this procedure, in which all breast tissue is removed but the nipple is preserved, your surgeon can make the scar less visible by making the incision in the inframammary fold below the breast.