Plastic surgery has become more common among seniors, especially women ages 55 and up, says Ana Phelps, marketing director and cosmetic consultant at Dr. Deisher’s Heartland Plastic and Hand Surgery in Cape Girardeau. In many cases, these patients have lost a spouse and are preparing to re-enter the dating scene.

“They still want to look good and feel good,” says Phelps. Facial procedures like face and eye lifts are most popular among seniors, and tummy tucks come in at No. 2, she notes. Many seniors also benefit from reconstructive plastic surgery after a medical procedure.

After being diagnosed with breast cancer in 2003, Jackson resident Mary Kirn, age 69, underwent a mastectomy and breast reconstruction surgery. It was a lengthy process, she says. After the mastectomy, she had to wait a year for the reconstruction because she was still having chemotherapy treatments. Before the TRAM flap reconstruction, which transfers tissue from the abdomen to the breast, Kirn also had to use tissue expanders to make room for the implant in her breast. When it was finally time for the reconstruction, Kirn had surgery on her remaining breast, too, so that it would match her new breast. It took three or four weeks to recover from each surgery, but she says it was worth the wait.

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