For women who do not receive an immediate breast reconstruction after their mastectomy, there are several ways to cope with not having a breast. One of these involves temporarily using a prosthesis to restore the shape of the chest.

Just because women receive one form of breast reconstruction following mastectomy doesn't mean they won't get another later in life. In fact, reconstructions may need occasional maintenance or even replacement, much like breast augmentations.

While many cancer survivors will pursue breast reconstructions, not all of them will go for - or even know about - an immediate resculpting procedure.

Jay has taken black-and-white portraits of dozens of young women, some with breast reconstructions, some without. The photographs depict women in their homes and in studios, laughing, crying or simply looking into the lens.

After your breast reconstruction consultation but before the procedure itself, you may find yourself wondering what to expect from your post-surgical recovery.

What are my surgical options? Can I have a breast reconstruction? What happens after I get one? These queries and many more get addressed in a new book by cancer survivor Amy Curran Baker.

As part of her journey through breast cancer, Andrea Torres, the media editor for the Miami Herald, is documenting her ongoing going travails and triumphs in a weekly web series.

For most women, having a mastectomy is traumatic experience, regardless of whether they plan to pursue a breast reconstruction afterward. As singer Victoria Bordner recently explained to Ivanhoe Newswire, the removal of her breast left her scarred, both mentally and physically.

According to Andrea Torres, who was recently diagnosed with the disease, she takes comfort from fellow patients who meet surgery, radiation and breast reconstruction with hope and good cheer.

Being diagnosed with breast cancer can leave you with one unavoidable question: Will I definitely lose my entire breast?

In December 2011, more than a decade after losing a breast to cancer, Suzanne Somers appeared on The Dr. Oz Show to discuss her diagnosis, mastectomy and recent delayed breast reconstruction.

A woman considering breast reconstruction may face a preliminary or subsequent course of chemotherapy or radiation for breast cancer.

Just two weeks after having a double mastectomy and immediate breast reconstruction, celebrated talk show host Giuliana Rancic appeared on NBC's Today Show to discuss the operation and her recovery.

After any major surgery, patients face a risk of post-operative complications. This likelihood may vary based on a patient's age, body type or lifestyle. For instance, a recently published study found that obese women may have a higher risk of complications following breast reconstruction.

Even though the immediate form of the operation is widely available, fewer women opt for it than might be expected.

It is quite common for cancer survivors to choose to have breast reconstructions these days, though plenty of women opt out. One group of survivors who have conducted ongoing debates over reconstructive surgery is the substantial number of Jewish women in the U.S.

The 54-year-old mother of four recently underwent a native tissue breast reconstruction after living with a feeling of being less than whole, following a mastectomy in 2007.

Just because a mastectomy recipient is over the age of 65 doesn't mean she needs to write off the possibility of a breast reconstruction.

Though breast reconstruction naturally involves some scarring and changes in tissue composition, that doesn't mean that women don't have plenty of options for improving the realism of their new breasts.

Celebrity news talk show host Giuliana Rancic recently announced that she will be getting a preventative double mastectomy.

Though federal law requires insurance providers to cover breast reconstructions for cancer survivors who undergo mastectomies, it does not ensure that physicians will discuss the available reconstruction options with a patient. A recent survey confirms that, in fact, many doctors don't.

Though silicone implants are still the most common type of breast reconstruction in the U.S., native-tissue operations are quite common. According to a recently published scientific report, these implant-free procedures tend to result in rapid improvements in cancer survivors' quality of life

Short for "Surviving Cancer Absolute Reality," the SCAR series features intimate portraits of young women who have overcome breast cancer.

While some women choose to have implant-based reconstructions, others opt for procedures that repurpose their own abdominal tissue.

Fortunately, nearly every major U.S. public health authority agrees that breast reconstructions do not entail any increased risk of cancer recurrence.

Such an operation may boost emotional and sexual well-being, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Toronto and New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

Overcoming breast cancer is often exhausting, in no small part because treatments can be socially isolating and physically invasive. That's one reason why many cancer survivors reach out to one another as a way to facilitate recovery.

Besides the increased affordability of such operations and the greater number of surgery types available to women, there remains the simple reason that breast cancer is quite common.

Women who are considering having a breast reconstruction often wonder how true-to-life the outcome of such a procedure will be. While their concerns are valid, many resculpted breasts are a product of careful artistry and skill, as one can see in before-and-after photos offered by medical organizations like the American Society of Plastic Surgeons.

Having been diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 28, author Geralyn Lucas did not think she had much time left. Now, more than a decade and a half later, she has been through chemotherapy, a mastectomy and breast reconstruction, she told the Washington Post

Every year, nearly 100,000 American women have one or both breasts reconstructed, often after a mastectomy to treat breast cancer. However, the rate of reconstructive surgery does not match that of breast cancer itself - at least, not when examined in light of race or socioeconomic class.

Even though the lumpectomy is a less invasive method for treating breast cancer, many women choose to have a full mastectomy and breast reconstruction anyway, according to a recent article published in the Evansville Courier and Press.

Breast cancer survivors sometimes report overcoming serious physical and emotional difficulties on their way to becoming whole again. These are usually personal and private. However, one New Yorker told the UK Daily Mail that Transportation Security Administration (TSA) agents publicly humiliated her for having a breast reconstruction.

Uninsured cancer patients in underserved communities are more likely to get breast reconstructions if educated on their options prior to surgery. That is the latest finding of a team of American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS) members, who described their investigation at this year's ASPS conference, Plastic Surgery 11 The Meeting.

Liza Goddard, best known for her work on the UK television series Doctor Who and the Australian show Skippy the Bush Kangaroo, recently released a new memoir detailing, among other things, her battle with breast cancer.