Dermal Filler for Reconstruction

Before and after dermal filler for reconstruction after parotid cancer excision and radiotherapy

Dermal fillers can be used for reconstruction purposes as well. Here is a case about it’s use after excision of a cancer.

This patient was diagnosed with a parotid cancer 7 years ago. This was treated with excision and radiotherapy.

This left the patient with a large depression on the right side of her face on the side view. On viewing from the front , the patient had severe asymmetry of her face in particular her cheeks and jawline. The right side looked older than the left.

To disguise this issue, the patient wore her hair forward , in front of her right face for the last 7 years.

After the patient had been cancer free for 5 years, she wanted to do something about the deformity, but didn’t know what to do.

Dermal filler was an option, but I wasn’t sure how easy it would be to inject or how well the area would lift, The skin from the surgery and radiotherapy seemed very tight, with scarring and tethering.

The plan for the patient was just to inject a small dose per treatment with potentially multiple treatments. I told the patient that I would have more idea after injecting on the first occasion, to see if we were going to get a good result.

On our first injecting session, everything went well, everything lifted well. I had to be very cautious, because in a case like this, anatomy is disturbed, so it is not as simple as non-reconstructive injecting.

We injected 4 mls per treatment session over 4 sessions, with satisfying results. In the after photos, the patient just  looks healthy. The results are excellent, but not perfectly symmetrical yet, but in the last session I was having difficulty lifting the area further. I have decided to give the patient a break for several months to allow these results to settle in and then start again.

I’d just like to thank my dermal filler suppliers, Galderma, who, when I came to them about this case, generously donated the dermal filler used to improve the deformity.

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