Today, Dr. Haik is able to offer women requiring more moderate surgery immediate cosmetic repair. Patients with a non-invasive cancer called DCIS (ductal carcinoma in situ), in particular, can benefit from her innovative approach.

DCIS is the most rapidly growing breast cancer diagnosis affecting nearly 60,000 women each year. DCIS patients have a nearly 100 percent survival rate after their cancer is surgically removed.

Nevertheless, since DCIS is distributed throughout the ductal system, the surgeon may have to take out a substantial amount of breast tissue. Dr. Haik uses a variety of reconstructive techniques to ensure that these patients will look as good as they did before their cancer surgery. After removing the DCIS, he artfully works with the patient's remaining tissue to create a natural looking breast.

 "The beauty of this approach is the new strategy of planning the surgery in advance, using plastic surgery techniques to preserve the original breast and symmetry of the remaining breast. In some cases, while removing the tumor we are able to improve the breast’s original shape, performing a breast reduction or mastopexy as in aesthetic surgery".

When necessary, a plastic surgeon can also reshape the woman's other breast to give her a more balanced appearance. Dr. Haik and other plastic surgeons has been performing this innovative surgery since 2003 with the elegant stitches of a Paris couturier. We are all happy to see our patients so pleased with their results."

Increasingly, cancer patients have begun to ask about breast conservation. Oncoplastic techniques are a welcome addition to the surgeon's arsenal. Says Haik, "Our goal is not only to remove the cancer but to keep the woman whole while she's moving toward her cure."

Dr. Haik also is the Director of Trauma and Plastic Surgery Services at IMS Global.