Resensation After Mastectomy: How Nerve Regeneration Works and Why It Matters​​​​​​​

For many women undergoing mastectomy and breast reconstruction, restoring appearance is only part of the healing journey. One of the most overlooked aspects of breast reconstruction is sensation. After a mastectomy, it is common to experience numbness across the chest because sensory nerves are severed during breast tissue removal. Today, advances in surgery are making it possible not only to reconstruct the breast’s shape, but also to restore feeling - a process known as resensation.
 

Why Sensation Is Lost After Mastectomy

During a mastectomy, breast tissue is removed to treat or prevent breast cancer. In the process, the small sensory nerves that provide feeling to the skin and nipple-areola complex are typically cut.

This results in:

• Numbness across the breast and chest wall
• Reduced temperature sensitivity
• Decreased protective sensation
• A feeling of disconnect from the reconstructed breast

While breast reconstruction can recreate the breast’s contour, traditional techniques do not automatically restore sensation. For many patients, this sensory loss can impact emotional well-being, body image, and overall quality of life.
 

What Is Resensation?

Resensation is a surgical technique that reconnects or reconstructs nerves during breast reconstruction to help restore feeling over time. Using advanced techniques, our surgeon carefully connects sensory nerves from the chest wall to nerves within the reconstructed breast tissue (often during autologous or “flap” reconstruction). These connections give nerves a pathway to regrow and reestablish sensation. This approach is sometimes referred to as neurotization, and it represents a significant advancement in reconstructive breast surgery.
 

How Nerve Regeneration Works

Nerve regeneration is a gradual biological process.

When a nerve is surgically repaired:

• Nerve fibers begin to regrow from the connected nerve ending.
• These fibers grow at a rate of approximately 1 millimeter per day.
• Over months, the regenerating nerve fibers extend into the reconstructed tissue.
• Sensory signals begin traveling to the brain again.

Patients may first notice tingling or light sensation before more refined feeling develops. The timeline varies, but many individuals begin experiencing returning sensation within several months, with continued improvement over 1-2 years. While sensation may not be identical to pre-mastectomy feeling, significant restoration of protective and light-touch sensation is possible.
 

Why Resensation Matters

• Improved Safety: Protective sensation allows patients to feel heat, pressure, and injury. Without it, there is a higher risk of burns or unnoticed trauma to the reconstructed breast.
• Enhanced Quality of Life: Many patients describe numbness as emotionally distressing. Restoring sensation can help patients feel more connected to their bodies and improve overall satisfaction with reconstruction.
• More Natural Reconstruction Outcomes: Breast reconstruction is not only about appearance - it is about restoring form and function. Resensation helps bring reconstruction closer to that goal.
   

Reclaim Comfort, Confidence, and Connection

Breast reconstruction has evolved far beyond simply recreating shape. Today, restoring sensation is becoming an important part of comprehensive, patient-centered care. Resensation offers the possibility of reconnecting not only nerves, but also a deeper sense of wholeness after mastectomy.

If you would like to learn more about resensation and advanced breast reconstruction techniques, schedule a consultation with Jason K. Potter, MD, DDS. Contact our office in Dallas, Texas, by calling (214) 892-2474 to book an appointment today.