[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":3,"doc-detail-438302-en":59,"doc-seo-438302-105":82},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"success",[7,13,18,23,28,33,38,43,48,51,55],{"id":8,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":10,"show_sort_weight":11,"slug":12},1,"Document","Story & Novel",90,"story-novel",{"id":14,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":15,"show_sort_weight":16,"slug":17},2,"Literature",80,"literature",{"id":19,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":20,"show_sort_weight":21,"slug":22},4,"Exam",70,"exam",{"id":24,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":25,"show_sort_weight":26,"slug":27},5,"Comic",60,"comic",{"id":29,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":30,"show_sort_weight":31,"slug":32},6,"Technology",50,"technology",{"id":34,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":35,"show_sort_weight":36,"slug":37},7,"Healthcare",40,"healthcare",{"id":39,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":40,"show_sort_weight":41,"slug":42},8,"Research & Report",30,"research-report",{"id":44,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":45,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":47},9,"Religion & Spirituality",20,"religion-spirituality",{"id":46,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":49,"show_sort_weight":46,"slug":50},"World Cup","world-cup",{"id":52,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":53,"show_sort_weight":52,"slug":54},10,"Lifestyle","lifestyle",{"id":56,"doc_module":4,"doc_module_name":9,"category_name":57,"show_sort_weight":24,"slug":58},19,"General","general",{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":60},{"doc_id":61,"user_id":62,"nickname":63,"user_avatar":64,"doc_module":4,"category_id":34,"category_name":35,"doc_title":65,"doc_description":66,"doc_content":67,"file_id":68,"file_url":69,"file_type":70,"file_size":71,"view_count":72,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":8,"is_downloadable":8,"audit_status":8,"page_count":73,"language":74,"language_code":75,"site_id":76,"html_lang":75,"table_of_contents":77,"faqs":78,"seo_title":79,"seo_description":66,"update_tm":80,"read_time":81},438302,3985747859855,"hdkawk","https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/davatar_276721f389ce27ea32af1340a28f341c","Nerve Grafts in Breast Reconstruction: A Narrative Review","Breast reconstruction after mastectomy aims to restore breast appearance and psychological well-being, yet many patients still experience postoperative sensory loss, especially reduced nipple sensitivity, which lowers quality of life. This narrative review summarizes research progress on nerve grafting in breast reconstruction, focusing on clinical applications, technical challenges, and future directions. It also outlines breast neuroanatomy relevant to sensory innervation of the nipple-areola complex and discusses pathways to rebuild breast sensation.","Wiley  \nThe Breast Journal  \nVolume 2025, Article ID 1035158, 11 pages [https://doi.org/10.1155/tbj/1035158](https://doi.org/10.1155/tbj/1035158)  \nReview Article  \nNerve Grafts in Breast Reconstruction: A Narrative Review  \nYan Shen , 1 Juan Zhang , 1 Yihua Liu ,2 and Haifeng Cai 1  \n1 Department of Breast Surgery, Tangshan People’s Hospital, Tangshan 063000, Hebei, China  \n2 Department of General Medical Subjects, Ezhou Central Hospital, Ezhou 436000, Hubei, China  \nCorrespondence should be addressed to Haifeng Cai; [13303050005@163.com](13303050005@163.com)  \nReceived 22 July 2024; Revised 1 December 2025; Accepted 18 December 2025  \nAcademic Editor: Karuna Sharma  \nCopyright © 2025 Yan Shen et al. Te Breast Journal published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd. Tis is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.  \nBreast reconstruction post-mastectomy restores breast aesthetics and signifcantly enhances patients’ self-confdence and psychological well-being. However, despite the efectiveness of current breast reconstruction techniques in restoring the aesthetic appearance of the breast, many patients continue to experience the loss of breast sensation following surgery, particularly the loss of nipple sensitivity, which signifcantly impacts postoperative quality of life. To address this issue, the use of nerve grafting techniques in breast reconstruction is increasingly being recognized and explored. Tis review summarizes the research progress of nerve grafting in breast reconstruction, highlighting its clinical applications, technical challenges, and future directions.  \nKeywords: breast cancer; breast reconstruction; nerve grafting  \n1. Introduction  \nBreast cancer is a pervasive malignancy among women that requires surgical management as the primary treatment option. Breast reconstruction plays a crucial role in the postoperative management of breast cancer patients, aiming to restore both the appearance and psychological well-being of individuals. Nipple-sparing mastectomy (NSM) with implant-based reconstruction has become increasingly favored by surgeons and patients due to its favorable aesthetic outcomes, low complication rates, and reduced psychological impact of mastectomy [1] . Traditional reconstruction techniques often result in postoperative sensory loss, signifcantly afecting the quality of life of the patients. Ina prospective longitudinal study of 259 postoperative breast cancer patients conducted by K. M. Flowers, approximately half of the participants reported experiencing numbness following surgery [2] . A prospective longitudinal study that assessed body image, quality of life, and pain in breast cancer surgery patients before and at 30, 60, and 90 days postoperatively revealed signifcant diferences in body image between the preoperative and 30-day postoperative assessments, along with changes in sexual function and  \nsatisfaction [3] . Recent advances in nerve repair have facilitated the integration of nerve grafting into breast reconstruction, marking a signifcant advancement in restoring sensory function to reconstructed breasts [4] .  \n2. Neuroanatomy of the Breast  \nTere has been extensive debate regarding the distribution of nerves innervating the breast, particularly those associated with the nipple–areola complex (NAC) . Te nerve distribution is primarily known through autopsy studies. Te sensory innervation of the breast stems from the lateral cutaneous branches (LCBs) and anterior cutaneous branches (ACBs) of the 2nd to 6th intercostal nerves (ICNs) and, toa lesser extent, the supraclavicular nerve [5–7] . Schlenz et al. dissected 28 female cadavers and found that the NACs were always innervated by the LCBs and ACBs of the 3rd, 4th, and 5th ICNs. Te most constant innervation pattern was by the 4th LCBs (79%) and by the 3rd and 4th ACBs (57%) [8] . Subsequent ","cbCaihp0RwLByPYC","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaihp0RwLByPYC","pdf",566927,3,11,"English","en",105,"# Introduction\n# Neuroanatomy of the Breast\n## Nerve innervation of the nipple–areola complex (NAC)\n# Ways to Rebuild Breast Sensation\n## Autologous nerve grafting","[{\"question\":\"Why is sensory loss a key issue after breast reconstruction?\",\"answer\":\"Postoperative sensory loss, particularly loss of nipple sensitivity, persists even when reconstruction restores breast appearance. This reduction in sensation negatively affects postoperative quality of life.\"},{\"question\":\"What nerves are primarily involved in breast sensory innervation?\",\"answer\":\"Sensory innervation is mainly attributed to lateral and anterior cutaneous branches of the 2nd to 6th intercostal nerves, with the supraclavicular nerve playing a lesser role.\"},{\"question\":\"How does nerve grafting relate to restoring sensation after reconstruction?\",\"answer\":\"The review notes that spontaneous recovery of sensation after reconstruction is inconsistent and limited. Sensory nerve grafting is presented as a strategy that may enable better and faster sensory recovery.\"}]","Nerve Grafts in Breast Reconstruction: A Narrative Review | PDF",1790684937,28,{"code":4,"msg":83,"data":84},"ok",{"site_id":76,"language":75,"slug":85,"title":65,"keywords":86,"description":66,"schema_data":87,"social_meta":140,"head_meta":142,"extra_data":144,"updated_unix":145},"nerve-grafts-in-breast-reconstruction-a-narrative-review","",{"@graph":88,"@context":139},[89,102,122],{"@type":90,"itemListElement":91},"BreadcrumbList",[92,96,98,100],{"item":93,"name":94,"@type":95,"position":8},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":97,"name":9,"@type":95,"position":14},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/",{"item":99,"name":35,"@type":95,"position":72},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/",{"item":101,"name":65,"@type":95,"position":19},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/nerve-grafts-in-breast-reconstruction-a-narrative-review/438302/",{"url":101,"name":65,"@type":103,"image":104,"author":109,"headline":65,"publisher":111,"fileFormat":114,"inLanguage":75,"description":66,"dateModified":115,"datePublished":116,"encodingFormat":114,"isAccessibleForFree":117,"interactionStatistic":118},"DigitalDocument",{"url":105,"@type":106,"width":107,"height":108},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/nerve-grafts-in-breast-reconstruction-a-narrative-review/438302.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":63,"@type":110},"Person",{"url":93,"name":112,"@type":113},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-01","2026-09-29",true,{"@type":119,"interactionType":120,"userInteractionCount":72},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":121},"ViewAction",{"@type":123,"mainEntity":124},"FAQPage",[125,131,135],{"name":126,"@type":127,"acceptedAnswer":128},"Why is sensory loss a key issue after breast reconstruction?","Question",{"text":129,"@type":130},"Postoperative sensory loss, particularly loss of nipple sensitivity, persists even when reconstruction restores breast appearance. This reduction in sensation negatively affects postoperative quality of life.","Answer",{"name":132,"@type":127,"acceptedAnswer":133},"What nerves are primarily involved in breast sensory innervation?",{"text":134,"@type":130},"Sensory innervation is mainly attributed to lateral and anterior cutaneous branches of the 2nd to 6th intercostal nerves, with the supraclavicular nerve playing a lesser role.",{"name":136,"@type":127,"acceptedAnswer":137},"How does nerve grafting relate to restoring sensation after reconstruction?",{"text":138,"@type":130},"The review notes that spontaneous recovery of sensation after reconstruction is inconsistent and limited. Sensory nerve grafting is presented as a strategy that may enable better and faster sensory recovery.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":101,"og:type":141,"og:title":65,"og:site_name":112,"og:description":66},"article",{"robots":143,"canonical":101},"index,follow",{"doc_id":61,"site_id":76},1790740427]