BREAST IMPLANT SIZING 101
Comments
-
Whippetmom - I was told to email my questions to you for help........my original post is below. Also, I cannot figure out how to get to the "pic forum".
I have exchange surgery on 4/30/12. Currently have 380cc expanders and going to 350cc Allergen Natural style 20 high profile silicone. I am 5'5 1/2" and weigh 123lbs with narrow chest. I would love to see some pictures of similar size as I'm starting to panic that I am going too small even though it is surgeons recommendation. I had skin sparing bilateral mastectomies. Doctor thinks 350 will be signifcant on me. With 380cc filled expander I am full B or small C but would like to stay that way. How much smaller will I be?
Also, has anyone had permanent sutures poke through skin from Alloderm? Guess these have to be removed with exchange surgery.
Thanks
0 -
Hi everybody:
It is 10 days now after my implant surgery and I am quite pleased with how they look. The PS will see me again on the 26th and he told me to massage my breasts down and in and out (sides). They are still a little bit high but I look better than I looked before surgery. I don't have to wear a bra. Hooray for that! I don't like them unless I really have to (under something a little too thin or transparent. The doc said I should let gravity move the implants a little lower. I am also massaging my scars with calendula cream. A lot of friends recommended that for scars. It is working already. Good luck to everyone!
0 -
Hi all! Whippetmom: I had a BMX on February 14, and am in TE's right now. My PS says he plans to expand me to 400 or 425, but I'm concerned that may be too big. My expanders hold 400ml, and my paperwork says they are 133MV. I'm 5'5", weigh 122, and my ribcage is 28 inches.
I'm up tp 300cc so far, and i think what bothers me is the diameter of the expanders; they extend way out to the sides, and just look like huge, flat disks! I don't want to be huge and flat, just medium and as close to normal as I can get. Will this appearance change with the implants? Do they come in smaller diameters for small people? Do you have any suggestions for implant sizing?
0 -
t43179: Well, 350 ccs sounds a tad bit small, but I need to know about your TEs. What style and volume? Is 380 ccs overfill or underfill? It all depends on your TE dimensions. Also, what is your ribcage circumference?
0 -
Maxine: they are displacing laterally, which can happen. They should not be flat, at 300 ccs fill. Perhaps you should send me photos. Your PS must be planning on either 500ccs HPs or around 400 ccs in a midrange profile implant. You can PM me for my email address...
0 -
Hi, I am newly diagnosed 2April and although small, early stage, and no nodes affected, because it is lobular and multifocal and I have some family history, I will have BMX probably in 2 weeks. No radiation or chemo recommended, just anti-hormonal afterwards. I am freaking out. I live in Switzerland. My breast oncologist said I cannot have the autologous type with my own body tissue because of the cancer being lobular, sneaky, and very hard to see if recurrence. So now I am "stuck" with implants (which actually makes my decision-making easier). Here they usually do mastectomy and implants in one-step process, so where can I go to get info and connect with others who have done that? It seems like everyone on the forum is with TEs. I really need help with size because I have aways wanted smaller breasts. I am 5'7" 130lbs with 34DD. I am scared about putting the implants under the pectoral muscle and failure rates etc. I am having trouble finding threads on the forum for my particular case, info on how to do the measurements, photos, etc. I am meeting with PS tomorrow for first time. Thank you for any guidance you can provide.
0 -
Fearlessfoot: Look for the "One-Step" threads. Here in the U.S, it is a one- step with Alloderm, which is the standard. I think that the fact that you will have ample skin flaps and will want to be smaller, makes you a good candidate for this procedure, but some things need to be discussed. Implants with a volume around 425 ccs to 475 ccs in a HP style would be nice for your frame, but it all depends on the skin envelopes - how much remains after the BMX. Because you are large breasted, you might have some droop? If so, where will your nipples end up on the mound when the implants are placed. This is a good question for your PS. Your current breast size and degree of ptosis is a factor to discuss. Where will the suture be..e.g., what is the surgical approach? Find out if your PS will use anatomical implants - like the Allergan 410 or Mentor CPG, or silicone or saline rounds. Let us know after your appt and we can discuss further.
0 -
Oh, thank you so much, whippetmom! This is so very helpful to go with these kind of specific questions! What a wonderful resource we have in you and others on this forum!0
-
Whippitmom, my TE's are Allergan Naturalle style 133FX-11-T 350cc so I am 30cc overfill. I measured just under fram fold and am 28 inches there. Dr says I will be 1 shot glass smaller going from 380 TE to 350 silicone but what about the extra plastic in the expander? I would love to see pics of other 350cc's.
0 -
Fearlessfoot - So you are hoping for nipple sparing MX? I was diagnosed with both ILC and DCIS and I was offered DIEP as an option. It's amazing how different things are from place to place and even from doctor to doctor. I chose implant reconstruction (with TEs). Here's a thread for nipple sparing MX:
http://community.breastcancer.org/forum/44/topic/745796?page=108#idx_3236
The thread name is a bit confusing, but both TE/delayed reconstruction and one-step patients post there.
Good luck!
0 -
T43179
Your TEs are 11.0 cm in width and 5.9 cm in projection. 350 cc HP implants will be 11.4 cm width and 4.9 cm projection. I also answered you via PM.0 -
Hello Ladies:
I have already posted the same question in other forums. I am just anxious to know if it is normal for tissue expanders to migrate. My left tissue expander has moved and the magnet is quite close to my armpit. I would appreciate any insight anyone could give me regarding this matter.
Thank you in advance for your help
0 -
whippetmom wrote: "that would be a moderate height TE with a width of 13.0 cm and a volume of 400 ccs or a full height with a volume of 500 ccs - same width. And thereafter, perhaps use a moderate plus profile implant with a volume of around 371 ccs."
Please help me understand your recommendation. The volume of the implant you are suggesting is much greater than that of my natural breast. Why? Won't that make the reconstructed breast much bigger than the other? I am so afraid that I will end up completely lopsided and stuck with an implant I never wanted in the first place. I'm getting paranoid because I feel like I am blundering around in the dark and can't find any explanations of why things are done the way they are. Help me out please!
0 -
curveball: Your PS selects the TE in accordance with the width of your native breast and other chest wall characteristics. The dimensions of the TE dictates the style and volume of the implant. Are you communicating at all with your PS about this? Have you asked him what style and volume of implant HE intends to use? Maybe he has access to the Allergan style 410 which is an anatomical shaped implant. If so, the numbers could be entirely different.
0 -
mkw1: Oh yes, the TEs can and will migrate and their preferred migration pattern is east and west. It is something which will be addressed/corrected at the time of exchange. There are some instances where the TE migrates/displaces so inappropriately that removal and repositioning is necessary. Very isolated cases, but it can happen. You can always email me photos.
0 -
mkw1 - I don't know if I would say that it is 'normal' but it is not unusual. Mine drifted, although not as far as what you have described. Have you let your PS know? I would definitely alert him/her in case they do not know. TE's do their job as far as stretching but very few of us looked 'normal.' They can migrate and often take some funky shapes as they do their job. I've heard them described as 'tortoise and cocunut shells' and that is being nice as to the shape they can often take on our respective bodies.
Please do let your PS know if they don't.Edited for typos and whippetmom - I've taken so long to write this post that you posted before I could get this done. It's late here and I really do need to go to bed. My brain is super.slow. mkw1 - listen to whippetmom!
0 -
whippetmom wrote: "Your PS selects the TE in accordance with the width of your native breast and other chest wall characteristics. The dimensions of the TE dictates the style and volume of the implant. Are you communicating at all with your PS about this? Have you asked him what style and volume of implant HE intends to use? Maybe he has access to the Allergan style 410 which is an anatomical shaped implant."
I did not have time to get into these details during my original meeting with the first PS. I have an appointment for a second opinion a week from today with a surgeon who is experienced at microsurgical flap surgery, and if he concurs with the first PS' opinion that I am too thin for any type of flap reconstruction I will meet again with the first PS to go into more details. I will ask what TE and implant he has in mind but I still feel very much in the dark. How will I know whether he is giving me a valid answer or a bunch of baloney? How can I tell if the implant he is suggesting will make a reconstructed breast that looks like the unaffected one? He talked about surgery on the remaining natural breast to make it match the reconstructed side, which I absolutely don't want. I am so afraid I will either end up with a reconstruction that is grotesquely mismatched with my natural breast or get talked into more surgery to "improve symmetry" and end up with neither breast being consistent with my age and previous appearance. How do I know if it is true when he says the implant side can't be made to look like my real breast (same droopiness)? I am afraid PS will make the reconstruction look like what he thinks it should look like, not what I think it should look like, and how could I even tell beforehand if that is what he is going to do? Maybe I'm being unfair to him and he has no such idea in mind. Like I said, I'm getting paranoid.
I do not know if he has access to the Allergan style implants or not, but that is a silicone implant isn't it? I think I would prefer saline. At least if a saline implant leaks the contents are just absorbed harmlessly by the body.
0 -
Curveball: Okay, I had to go back and look at your previous posts. You do NOT yet have tissue expanders. The sizing I gave you was merely a hypothetical. I have no perfect answer to the exact size you will need. The PS will determine the proper style and TE based on many parameters, not the least of which is how to best gain symmetry with the native breast. There are no guarantees for any of us. Some of us do need to seek revision after the exchange surgery. I would suggest that you might be a candidate for a Mentor Spectrum expandable, which is saline and allows the PS to expand gradually over a period of up to six months and in small increments, which might be helpful if you want to leave the native breast untouched. Just a thought though. This might not be the best choice and you just have to get all of your options explained to you by a professional. If you want to PM me with your location in the U.S, I could give you names on my PS referral list..
0 -
How and where do I access the picture forum?
0 -
I just don't have that drop like the picture you posted Lago. My own sit very close to my chest. Although I am only close to a year from exchange.
Whippetmom my pictures will be forthcoming
0 -
Picture forum: PM me or Nowheregirl. Dawnhope is no longer a gatekeeper. Thanks guys!
0 -
Thank you whippetmom and Dawn Hope for your answer.
I actually did go to see the PS this morning and he said that the port of the te had shifted some, but the te is doing well.
Whippetmom: I will email you a picture soon. Thanks a lot.
0 -
mkw1 the ports shift all the time. Mine did as well. This is why the the doctor uses some kind of magnetic locator every time you have an expansion.
0 -
whippetmom, I sent you a PM. I am thinking about joining the photo forum but don't have any pictures of myself. I sent a message to the first PS asking how to get a copy of the ones he took at our consult.
Also if the 2nd opinion doctor also says, "no flap", asking about the Spectrum adjustable implant is on my list of questions.
0 -
Two recent realizations:
1) My TEs are very close together, and I keep wondering how I could possibly wear an underwire bra if the permanent implants are that close together. (You need the wires against your chest, not your implants, right?) Well, hellooooooo!!!! If I sit up straight and quit slouching over, they separate, exactly like they're supposed to. Posture exercises are at the top of my workout list for the summer!
2) With even the small (15 pounds) of weight I've lost so far, the TEs seem much bigger and harder now! Harder to sleep, since I'm a side sleeper, and there's less fat around me to pad the TEs.
Guess that's a reminder for anyone thinking they should lose weight.....now's the time to do it - NOT after you get the perfect sized permanent implants. You lose weight...they don't.
0 -
Blessings: Please send me photos. I want to see how close together they are, per your description.
I am PM'ing you my email address, in the event you do not have it.
Deborah
0 -
Whippetmom: I am finally scheduled for my TE exchange with a lift/reduction on the other breast. My surgery is 6/19 and my pre op is in 3 weeks. I'm very excited to get this done. I have had the TE for a year now. I want to make sure that I know what I want and what to ask when I go in. I was originally going for a large size B or a C. I am a DD and want to go smaller and have
been told that they probably couldn't get my left side back to that size anyway because of RADs damage. They have to stop filling because my skin was so tight. I am filled to 650 CC. I'm 5'3", rib cage 32 inches, weight 140 lbs. I have an Alergan Style 133 MV TE.I'm worried that I will not be able to get my MX breast to a large B at least. Do you think this will be possible? I feel very uncertain about what size to even ask for. Should I look at the picture forum to get ideas? Can you give me your opinion on the implant and is there anything special I should be asking the PS? Sorry I sound so wishy washy about this, but I am feeling so uncertain about my size at this point. I guess the reality of actually getting it fixed is scary because I don't want to be unhappy with the outcome.
Thanks for your help!
0 -
mammalou: Is this a 500 cc TE or a 600 cc TE? You are overfilled, but is it by 150 ccs or 50 ccs?
0 -
Whippetmom: It is a 500 cc TE
0
