NOLA in September?
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Anne, glad to hear you are being treated like a princess!!!
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!! October 22, 2011 is the NOLA Komen race !!! Eve, I think we need to try to do our Breastoration fundraiser that week, then you can stay on and have Halloween there.
Holtbolt, it's better for the patient to stay in network because our share is less, but then the provider has to accept contracted rates, which are so low it's criminal. However, there are so many variances to our plans that I don't think it's 100% clear-cut.
CandDsmom, I'm still not sure about traveling to your city in four weeks.....I may wait until the last second to book it, depending on your weather! Otherwise, it will be the end of September but I do want to meet you. Or...if you can make it to NOLA for our reunion...??? The best thing about our new building is that now we have the space to tackle production of new ideas....we are going to be printing custom flip flops!! I can't wait to get started.
Trishia, I'm sorry that you are having to wait for your biopsies--it's so frustating to have to wait like that. You do know that I made my hubby have his hernia surgery at St. Charles, right? I'm just kidding---it wasn't hard to convince him at all after he witnessed the care I received there. I just have to hope that the next surgery one of us needs is also something they can do = another excuse to go to NOLA. Ha ha!
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NORDY, It would be totally awesome if you can come. I am not sure if I can make October althought where there is a will there is a way. Just may have to be a shorter trip. I need to get through August because that is when our union contract is up with verizon. I am praying we will get a new contract but I have gone on strike either 2 or 3 times in the 14 years of service, So time will tell.If someone could let me know the dates for sure then I will work on
2 weeks til England and then 1 week to NOLA. Soon I sholuld be able to fly those planes myself. Hope all is well will everyone Has anyone able to get on the patients scrapbook link from thr centers site, Mine keep loading and loading but that was it I will try tomorrow
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So the Komen race is the NOLA Reunion date???
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C&D'sMom - added your date to the listing!
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October 22... count me in unless something crazy comes up!
Sally - will talk to hubby tomorrow, but not looking good for April.
Will keep you posted.Trishia... I am so sorry that you have to deal with the craziness of incompetency!
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Oct 22nd?!?!? Okay...it's a date!!!
Nordy hopefully your hubby is having better luck with Kadlec than I am!!
Sandy...if our insurance would allow it I would be there in a minute! But they don't like me so much.
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Hi Dragonfly,
Nothing's set yet, but at the very least it would be so much fun to do the race with our friends from the Center!
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Anne, how are you doing? How are the new yoga boobies??
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Trishia - he is home from there, but actually said that it was not bad at all. Of course, he was only dealing with nurses and laboring women... !
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Travel is no fun when you've got a sore tushie. Looks like I got a bit more of a butt-lift with outer leg lipo. And the big necrosis areas were excised. The drains are slowing down, so that's good.
Not too much discomfort, compared to the last time. But not near as much lipo was done. And I'm tired--the usual post-op and travel stuff, but still not too bad.
Apparently my recovery room issue was a histamine response to some IV pain meds they gave me. I think my itchiness must have worried them a bit, hence the Benadryl and Albuterol. All narcotics make me a little itchy-twitchy. Not a true allergy. Still, I spent more time in the RR than the OR!
DH is making supper tonight. Kitties have been by my side (or on my lap!) since we got home. And I'm going to take this DOM off and rub my bruises with arnica cream right now! (Oh, and in the TMI department--the DOM has more of a crotch hole than Spanx or the last Marena garment I got. No issues for me this time with peeing and staying dry!! But i DID keep checking to make sure my sweat pants had not slipped off, a la EVE!!!)
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Ok Ladies... another question.. This has now been pushed around on the Taxotere thread (we got off course) so I thought I'd throw out to you all...
IF I have had 2 nodes removed already, and do not plan to have any more... and then I have a MX with my recon, tell me about lymphedema with intramammary nodes?? I didn't realize these existed and I also didn't realize that is you have a MX that you can get LE... even if you don't have more nodes removed... AND what is the protocol in NOLA for prevention.
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I was excited to find Andouille sausage at my grocery store, so I made Jambalaya for dinner. I loved the food I had in N.O, so this was in honor of having been at NOLA last year. Go, Jambalaya. My newest recipe. I think I'll keep making it.
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Hi,
I am preparing for a MX with breast recon. I am educating myself with all possible options. I was reading all the posts here and I would like to know more about the following as I don't know them:
DIEP/GAP
DIEP/Lumbar
stacked DIEP
Any response will be greatly appreciated:-)
Thank you,
Laureen Romero
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bdavis- I had a MX with axil node disection, and also had an intramammary node removed as a sentinel node. I'm not sure how much you are at risk for LE if you have a MX now. I suppose having had nodes removed, there is always risk with any kind of surgery in that area that LE could develop. I then had a MX on my non cancer side when I had my bilateral DIEP. Dr. Massey checked my IM nodes when she was in there, and they looked fine and weren't enlarged. I haven't had any problems with LE (yet). Hopefully you won't either.
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bdavis, LE can happen to any of us who have have even one node removed. I had 18 nodes taken off one side, and one node off the other. I allow blood pressures and needle sticks on that side, because I feel I am at less risk for LE there. I could be fooling myself. But I have had no problems to date.
Inframammary nodes are limited, and they generally are deep. I have no idea how much they contribute to LE. I remember on one of my pathologies an IM node was incidentally taken with the mastectomy. I don't think the IM nodes are your primary movers of lymph fluid, but someone with more experience than I have could tell you. Consider going to the Lymphedema thread and asking Binney. She's the expert here.
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bdavis- sorry for the confusion. I was referring to an Internal Mammary Node in my case. Intramammary Nodes are surrounded by breast tissue and can be in any quadrant. The Internal Mammary Nodes are located between the sternum and ribs. That is where my positive node was.
But any node removal can contribute to LE.
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Bdavis (etal) - LE can be brought on by trauma. This can be a result of node removal (1 or a zillion), and / or lots of chest surgeries. I was even told that football players can get LE because of all the trauma with repeated hits. Anyway, in my case in had SNB with 2 removed on cancer side and one on the other. No positive nodes but after my third surgery I woke up with LE in my right upper back/arm. My surgeon at the time didn't believe LE was a real issue and never addressed it or did anything to help prevent it. Dr. Marga Massey is a pionier in the field of plastic surgeons in addressing LE risk head on. She is making it a mission and has trained the surgeons and staff at NOLA. She personally wrapped both of my arms before surgery and had an LE therapist work on me in while I was in the hospital after stage 1. Don't let any doctor, nurse or other medical professional tell you that you are not at risk.
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Laureen,
Hello. The things you were looking for information about are natural tissue reconstruction involving stacking flaps.
A stacked DIEP is 2 tummy flaps stacked to reconstruct one breast. This is done because there is not enough fat.
DIEP/GAP and DIEP/Lumbar are really the same thing. It is bilateral reconstruction with fat flaps where each breast has a tummy flap and a butt/lumbar (aka GAP) flap. This is also done when there is not enough fat.
I had a stacked DIEP/Lumbar in 2009 - this is what it was called then in NOLA. 2 flaps from tummy, 2 flaps from upper butt area. One each in each breast.
Hope this helps. Link to Stacked DIEP on the NOLA CRBS site http://breastcenter.com/procedures/stackeddiepflap.php
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Thanks Ladies... looks like even tho I have had my 2 nodes removed with no more intended, I still COULD have LE due to trauma... but my risks are low... and the removal of intramammary nodes is a possiblilty, but they aren't as important as the AX nodes...
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bdavis - are you thinking you DO have LE? If so, a LANA certified therapist can help you rule it out. They are really the only ones who know enough to give decent guidance.
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Ok. Well. Hello! I have taken a few deep breaths and I think I am ready to post here, finally. I have been reading along for the past couple of weeks, thanks to being given the link from a friend of a a friend (thanks, Springtime!). I am in the process of trying to arrange DIEP to be done in NOLA, hopefully in May. I have been given a tentative date, but am still awaiting insurance approval, etc, so don't want to jinx myself by posting the date until I know for sure. It was not until I spoke on the phone with Liz for almost an hour the other day, that this started to feel real to me. I am so scared/nervous, I practically shake when I think about it. I should be better at this than I am, having undergone 4 surgeries already - four years ago.
I was diagnosed 4 years ago this month, March 2007, just a week after having a breast reduction. Having done everything right for years - mammos, exams, self-exams etc, I had the reduction I had long hoped for. Was on top of the world for a week, until I went for my post-op check and the plastic surgeon said they found cancer in the tissues. As well as DCIS. Big mess, because the tumor had been cut open during the reduction, and it was obvious by the margins that there was remaining tumor somewhere in the breast. Really no choice but to do a mx, and I decided on a bilateral. The other breast turned out to be fine, but I had had scares with that breast over the years, so I didn't think I could live with the worry. So 3 weeks after the perfect breasts were created, they were gone, April 2007! I had expanders put in (pain pain pain nightmare), did my chemo, no rads - nodes clear Thank God. Recovered enough, physically anyway, to have the expanders exchanged for implants (August 2007), then caught my breath and had my ovaries removed October 2007. Crazy year.
I guess I will post this intro somewhere once I find my way around the site, but I just wanted to get the first post out of the way and hopefully get comfortable with talking about all of this in a forum. Reading these posts has been so helpful to me in making my decision to have these still uncomfortable, almost painful implants removed, and to go to NOLA to seek the best care I can find. I am sure I will have a million questions as I go forward, so I thank you all in advance, and I hope I can offer some support or encouragement to others as we travel down the road to get back to ourselves again. I certainly welcome all thoughts, ideas, suggestions, input and prayers. Thanks!
Amy
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SHREVE... no, I do not have LE... just curious if one can develop lymphedema from MX when no additional nodes are taken (had 2 taken initially with no problems)
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bdavis: a breast surgeon quoted me a 5% risk of LE from mastectomy alone, about the same as from a sentinel node biopsy.
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Well that's not significant.... Happy MARDI GRAS by the way.
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Amy, Welcome to the list! Are you having implants removed then? Glad you found us and hope things work out for you at NOLA.... Sounds like you are on the way. Normal to be all jittery. But remember, as everyone told me (and it's true!) You are in the best of hands!!
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Yes welcome Amy. I had DIEP at NOLA around this time last year. You have made a great choice for your care. You will find a ton of information here and people are great at helping to answer questions and share their experiences. Like Spring said, it's normal to be a little nervous, but really, you will actually enjoy your experience at NOLA. :-)
Suzanne
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enjoy??? how can that be? I too am nervous about the prospect, and I haven't even made my mind up 100%.
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Hi Amy - So sorry to hear all that you've gone thru, emotionally and physically. It sounds horrible! I hope your pain will be eased soon. You're going to the right place!
Laureen - Springtime's link will get you to the right place to explain the different procedures to you, as well as pictures of the results. NOLA is a great place to go because the docs are very experienced in multiple flap techniques. They will look you over and be able to tell you which method would work best for you, given your particular body type and where you carry your fat. I had a unilateral stacked DIEP in '06 because I didn't have a lot of excess abdominal fat. It worked out so great that when I decided to have prophylactic mast on the other side, this past year, I knew I would get the best possible results and care by returning to New Orleans. I had an SGAP and the results are excellent, eventho my derriere is not the biggest!
Anne - LOL! That was sure one of those situations that was a nightmare at the time, but hysterical in retrospect! Geez, maybe I should repost that, for those who missed reading about one of the most embarassing moments of my life!
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Bdavis - but we actually do enjoy ourselves there, as strange as that sounds!
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I agree with Minnesota, my 2 trips to NOLA were the best trips I've taken in a long time. Not only was I regaining my body back, it was a huge trip physically and mentally! Going there the 1st time is so much less scary with all these amazing ladies who had pioneered the road before me. I've chatted with them on here, and met some in person before, during and after this journey. The minute I got picked up at the airport by the wonderful car service all the nerves for me just vanished. I felt at peace and was so excited to meet the surgeon, awesome nurses and staff, and see the center. I had always wanted to see NOLA though before all this, so I made sure I got a ton of site seeing in on my trips and made it as fun and exciting as I could. The way I see it, my vacation to NOLA had a bonus, new boobs, those were just a little detour on our trip
I'm already trying to think of a way I can work in a 3rd trip! 0
