健康英语新闻:Slovenia develops new breast reconstruction treatment

LJUBLJANA, April 12 (Xinhua)-- Slovenian surgeons have successfully developed a new method of breast reconstruction for cancer patients, the Slovenian Press Agency (STA) reported on Tuesday.

Surgeons in Ljubljana Central Hospital use a three-dimensional mould to form a new breast from the patient's abdominal fat, and then have the tissue implanted and fixated in the place of the removed breast.

The mould making technique, developed by the Ljubljana Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, uses a laser to make an exact imprint of the healthy breast, which is then used to make a mirror-image three-dimensional mould for the reconstruction.

That is the first in the world to help woman patients overcome embarrassment of losing their breast after mastectomy, according to the report.

Speaking of the effect of the treatment, Uros Ahcan, head of plastic surgery ward in Ljubljana Central Hospital , said that the reconstructed breast is as symmetrical as possible with the healthy breast.

The latest breast reconstruction method has an advantage over artificial implants, because a breast reconstructed from adipose tissue grows and shrinks in case of weight gain and weight loss. In addition, the tissue has the same temperature as the rest of the body, the STA quoted Ahcan as saying.

The Ljubljana Central Hospital have done eight breast reconstruction operations for cancer patients, all of them were successful, with ten more planned in the coming weeks, the report added.

Some 1,200 Slovenian women are reportedly diagnosed with breast cancer annually. About 70 percent of the patients hope to have breast reconstruction after mastectomy.