• Cristian Ilie Drochioi, Daniela Sulea, Daniel Timofte, Veronica Mocanu, Eugenia Popescu, and Victor Vlad Costan.
• Department of Surgery, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dental Medicine, Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Iasi 700115, Romania. cristian_dro@yahoo.com.
• Medicina (Kaunas). 2019 Sep 29; 55 (10).

AbstractDue to the anatomical and functional complexity of the region, craniofacial tumor removal requires some of the most challenging surgical approaches, often complemented with advanced chemo-radiotherapy techniques. However, these modern therapies often lead to sequelae that can drastically reduce the quality of life for the surviving patients. Recent advances in the field of regenerative medicine opened new avenues for craniofacial reconstruction following head and neck cancer treatment. One of the most promising recent strategies relies on the use of autologous fat transplant. In this mini review, we briefly present some of the fat's biological properties that make it an ideal tissue for craniofacial reconstruction following cancer treatment. We then outline the recent advances that led to a better understanding of the detailed anatomy of the craniofacial fat depots. Furthermore, we provide a succinct review of the methods used for fat harvesting, processing and engrafting in the craniofacial area after head and neck tumor removal, discussing their main applications, advantages and limitations.

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