Skin-Sparing Mastectomy
During immediate reconstruction, it is often possible to perform a 'skin-sparing mastectomy'. This involves removing the nipple and the entire breast contents, but leaving most of the breast skin behind.
The scars after immediate reconstruction are either a circular scar around the nipple and areola (darker skin around the nipple) or a relatively small straight-line scar.
More skin is, therefore, removed at the time of mastectomy, resulting in a long scar across the chest wall. Although this scar will fade in time, it will always be present, even after reconstruction.