Table 1. Summary of studies on patient satisfaction with nipple sparing mastectomy.
| Study | Subjects (response rate) | Follow-up | Surgical technique | Responses considered “satisfied” | Satisfaction (%) | Other results | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nipple appearance | Nipple sensation | ||||||
| Didier et al. (1) | 159 (51.2) | Survey at 1 year | Subcutaneous NSM with intraoperative areolar ELIOT, implant reconstruction | Quite a bit, much, very much | 79 | 36 | 54% felt sexually attractive compared to 91% pre-operatively; 93% reported nipple preservation helped them cope with disease/consequences |
| Djohan et al. (2) | 78 (55.3) | 9–100 months, mean 50.4 | NSM, reconstruction with implant, DIEP, TRAM or other | Good, excellent | 72 | 10 | 66% satisfied with symmetry; 80% satisfied with color; 61% satisfied with position; 26% satisfied with arousal; 68% satisfied with texture |
| Mosahebi et al. (3) | 61 (93.0) | 8–109 months, mean 48 | NSM through mid-axillary incision, reconstruction with implant, implant + LD or DIEP | Satisfied, extremely satisfied | NA | NA | Satisfaction scores ranged 0.6 to 0.8 for all reconstruction types, with and without radiation (no significant difference); scores determined by comparing scores for reconstructed breast to contralateral or group average for unaffected breast in categories of satisfaction, comfort with brassiere and effect on sexual/social life |
| Munhoz et al. (4) | 18 (100.0) | 6–62 months, mean 29 | NSM with DCPI, BEIS reconstruction | Satisfied, very satisfied | 94.4 | NA | – |
| Nahabedian and Tsangaris (5) | 12 (100.0) | Survey at 6 months | Subcutaneous NSM, implant or flap reconstruction | Yes | 57.1 | 42.9 (present) | – |
| Sacchini et al. (6) | 110 (89.4) | 2–570.4 months, median 24.6 | NSM, implant or TRAM flap reconstruction | Score 7–10/10 | 90 | NA | Satisfaction 89%, 96% and 86% for implant, tissue expander and TRAM flap respectively; 94% satisfaction in prophylactic versus 87% in therapeutic |
| Ueda et al. (7) | 26 (79.0) | Median 16 months after chemotherapy and radiation | NSM, implant, LD, TRAM or DIEP reconstruction | Score out of 100% | NA | NA | Satisfaction scores using quality of life questionnaire for cancer patients treated with anticancer drugs: social activity 95%, physical aspects 88%, general condition 79%, bodily pain 76%, body image 73.5%, sexual aspects 60% |
| Yueh et al. (8) | 9 (90.0) | 2–89 months, mean 23 | NSM, implant or flap reconstruction | Satisfied, very satisfied | 66.7 | 80 (present) | 8.8/10 symmetry satisfaction score; 8.6/10 pigmentation satisfaction score |
NSM, nipple-sparing mastectomy; ELIOT, electron-beam radiotherapy; DIEP, deep inferior epigastric perforator flap; TRAM, transverse rectus abdominus muscle; LD, latissimus dorsi muscle; NA, not applicable; DCPI, double concentric periareolar incision; BEIS, biodimensional anatomical expander-implant system.