Breast — Treatment
When you choose to,
and not before.
Breast reconstruction is not a continuation of cancer treatment. It is a separate, personal decision that happens, when it happens, on your terms. Some women reconstruct immediately, alongside the mastectomy. Some wait years. Some choose, instead, to live with the body the cancer left behind — and that is also a valid answer.
What it is & what it isn't
Breast reconstruction recreates the breast after mastectomy or lumpectomy. Two main paths. Implant-based — usually staged with a tissue expander first, then exchanged for a permanent implant. Autologous (your own tissue) — most commonly the DIEP flap, using lower-belly skin and fat without sacrificing abdominal muscle. Each path has trade-offs we discuss in detail, slowly.
What it isn't
Not a return to before. Reconstruction recreates a breast — its appearance, its presence, the way clothes fit — but it does not undo the surgery that came before, and pretending otherwise would be unkind. Not a single operation; almost always two or three stages over six to twelve months. Not something we ask you to decide quickly.
The practical detail
What you are actually committing to.
- Stages
- Usually 2–3, over 6–12 months
- Approach
- Implant-based or autologous (DIEP flap)
- Anaesthesia
- General
- Procedure time
- 3–8 hours, depending on technique
- Hospital stay
- Typically 3–5 days for flap; 1–2 days for implant
- Stay in Antalya
- Typically 10–21 days (variable)
- Final result
- Settled over 12–18 months across stages
- Coordination
- With your oncologist and breast surgeon — at home and here
- Refinement
- Fat grafting and nipple reconstruction often follow
These figures are typical ranges, for planning your trip. Your own treatment and recovery timeline is assessed and decided by Dr. Meral — at consultation, and again as your healing progresses.
How it unfolds
The decision
Separate from the cancer treatment. You can decide now, in a year, or never. We talk before we examine. We do not photograph until you say so. We do not offer prices in the first conversation.
The plan
Implant or flap. Immediate (at the time of mastectomy) or delayed. One breast or two. The choice is yours, made with the full information about each path — including the trade-offs no one talks about until you've already chosen.
Stage one
For implants: tissue expander placement, or direct-to-implant where appropriate. For flap: the main reconstruction — abdomen tissue moved and connected with microsurgical precision. This is the long surgery.
The stages that follow
Tissue expander exchanged for permanent implant. Or fat grafting to refine the flap's contour. Symmetry work on the other breast where requested. Nipple reconstruction. Tattooing of the areola. Each step at your pace.
Recovery
Different from any other surgery on this site. Your body has just been through other things. Recovery is as much emotional as it is physical, and we treat it that way. There are months of slow returns to ordinary life — and we are present for them, including by video, including in a language your oncologist understands. You are not, after this, our patient for a week. You are our patient for a year, at minimum.
A typical course, not a promise — healing differs from person to person. Dr. Meral reviews you at each follow-up and decides when each step is right for you.
This may be for you if
- You have completed, or are about to complete, your cancer treatment
- You have thought about this for yourself — not because anyone has expected it of you
- You have a multi-disciplinary care team (oncologist + breast surgeon) we can coordinate with
- You understand: this is a year of staged surgeries, not a single event
- You're ready to be patient with your own body, in a way you may not have been before
This is not for you if
- You are being pressured by anyone — partner, family, well-meaning others — wait
- You haven't given yourself time after the cancer diagnosis to know what you actually want
- You expect the body you had before — reconstruction does not return it; we will not pretend otherwise
- You're not in a stable place to undergo months of staged surgery — there is no urgency; reconstruction will still be available next year
Begin
A conversation,
not a quote.
- +90 532 508 39 50
- info@mertmeral.com
- Hours
- Monday — Saturday · 09:00 — 19:00 (UTC+3)