The Plastic Surgery Foundation
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Grants We Funded

Grant applicants for the 2023 cycle requested a total of nearly $4 million dollars. The PSF Study Section Subcommittees of Basic & Translational Research and Clinical Research evaluated nearly 140 grant applications on the following topics:

The PSF awarded research grants totaling over $1 million dollars to support nearly 30 plastic surgery research proposals.

ASPS/PSF leadership is committed to continuing to provide high levels of investigator-initiated research support to ensure that plastic surgeons have the needed research resources to be pioneers and innovators in advancing the practice of medicine.

Research Abstracts

Search The PSF database to have easy access to full-text grant abstracts from past PSF-funded research projects 2003 to present. All abstracts are the work of the Principal Investigators and were retrieved from their PSF grant applications. Several different filters may be applied to locate abstracts specific to a particular focus area or PSF funding mechanism.

Nipple Delay Prior to Nipple Sparing Mastectomy: A Pilot RCT

Principal Investigator
Jennica Platt MD Msc

Year
2014

Institution
University Health Network

Funding Mechanism
Pilot Research Grant

Focus Area
Breast (Cosmetic / Reconstructive)

Abstract
The goal of nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) with immediate breast reconstruction is to reconstruct a breast mound with preservation a patient's natural skin envelope. Preservation of the nipple and areola complex during mastectomy and breast reconstruction is associated with improved quality of life and a better cosmetic result. However, this surgical technique relies on tenuous blood supply to maintain the nipple and areola. Therefore a certain proportion of women will actually lose their preserved nipple-areolar complex due to vascular insufficiency. Furthermore, some women may find out after a nipple-sparing mastectomy that cancer had invaded the nipple-areolar complex, and would require another operation to completely remove the cancer. Despite these devestating complications, there have been no controlled studies to investigate mechanisms to reduce the chance of their occurance.
Our research study will use a pre-operative minor procedure to enhance blood flow to the nipple-areola complex prior to standard nipple sparing mastectomy among eligible women undergoing mastectomy for breast cancer or risk reduction. A secondary objective is to test how many women actually have active cancer in their nipple at the time of this minor surgical procedure, prior to standard NSM. We will randomize women to an experimental group (nipple-delay procedure prior to standard NSM) or control group (standard NSM alone, current standard of care) and measure the occurances of post-operative nipple necrosis and occult malignancy. We hypothesize that our innovative and novel nipple-delay procedure will reduce the risk of loss of the nipple due to vascular insufficiency. Additionally, we hypothesize it is beneficial to identify the small proportion of women that will have nipple-areola complex involvement prior to standard NSM, in order to optimize the ultimate cancer ablation. For this study we propose to undertake a Pilot RCT as the first step in the evaluation of a delay procedure prior to NSM, and the results will be used to determine the feasibility and inform the optimal design for a definitive RCT. This study question has the potential to set a new standard of care in the management of women seeking NSM for the management of their breast cancer.

Biography
Jennica Platt, MD is a senior resident in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the University of Toronto in Toronto, Canada. She recently completed the Surgeon-Scientist Training Program through which she obtained a Master of Science graduate degree in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Care Research. Jennica’s past research has been awarded fellowship and grant funds through the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation and the Physician Services Incorporated Foundation, and has been recognized by several awards at local, regional and national conferences. She is currently working to build her academic profile and has published nearly 20 manuscripts and conference abstracts. Within the next 10 years, Jennica wishes to establish herself as a Surgeon-Investigator in the field of breast reconstruction with a focus on patient-oriented and health services research. Her over-arching research agenda will focus on improving access to, increasing utilization of, and optimizing patient outcomes after breast reconstruction for women undergoing mastectomy for breast cancer or risk reduction.