Published: October 18, 2006 11:24 pm      

Vinco twins break surgical ground

Naomi Whinnie counted on support from her identical twin, Nina Hildebrand, through two mastectomies and chemotherapy for breast cancer.

A first-of-its-kind surgery Tuesday brought the 44-year-old sisters from Vinco even closer.

Whinnie had both surgically damaged breasts reconstructed with tissue taken from her twin. The operations took place in Mount Pleasant, S.C.

“I can’t thank her enough for doing this for me,” Whinnie said from East Cooper Regional Medical Center in Mount Pleasant. “What a gift to make me feel good.”

Surgeons Robert J. Allen and James E. Craigie of the Center for Microsurgical Breast Reconstruction in Charlestown, S.C., performed the seven-hour operation using a technique pioneered by Allen.

Unlike the more-popular surgical implants or reconstruction with muscle tissue, Allen’s technique transplants skin and fat from the lower abdomen to reconstruct the breast.

“The big advantage is that it ends up with a more natural reconstruction that’s permanent,” Craigie said. “It doesn’t deteriorate over time, and it doesn’t sacrifice a muscle.”

Normally, surgeons transplant the patient’s own skin and fat, but Whinnie had undergone a tummy-tuck after the births of her children, Kala and Mason.

Because that left Whinnie ineligible for the normal option, Hildebrand asked if she could help.

“It just made sense to me,” Hildebrand said. “One option she couldn’t do, but I knew I could help her through this.”

Allen had twice used the procedure with identical twins, but only rebuilt one breast. They contacted the Center for Microsurgical Breast Reconstruction and were approved after additional tests to confirm they are identical twins.

“It was a win-win,” Whinnie said. “She gets to look good, and I was put back together again. She benefited because she had a tummy tuck.”

Hildebrand said it was not about self-improvement, but only concern for her sister.

“We are very close,” Hilde-brand said. “We only live about 500 yards apart. We talk on the phone every day. We go on vacations together.”

Whinnie said she learned about the deep inferior epigastric perforator flap – DIEP flap – reconstruction through her research on the Internet after her double mastectomy in Johnstown.

Only about 50 surgeons in the country have been trained in the advanced microsurgical techniques to dissect and connect tiny blood vessels under the operating microscope, Allen said.

He estimates that DIEP flap accounts for about 5 percent of breast reconstruction, while most use artificial implants, muscle tissue or both. That leads to concern about muscle loss.

“Muscle is created to do work. It has a function,” Allen said. “With DIEP flap, you don’t have to give up what the muscle does. You are replacing like with like.”

The first-ever double breast reconstruction with donated tissue drew media attention, Whinnie said Wednesday, after a full day of interviews. She praised the surgeon’s work saying she felt completely recovered, despite the attention.

Both sisters were getting a little tired, Whinnie admitted – but not from interviews or surgery.

“I kept my sister up all night, because I am whole again,” Whinnie said.

For more information, go to diepflap.com.