BREAST IMPLANT SIZING 101
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Green Monkey -- Thanks for sharing your pics and your experience with BC and reconstruction ! I agree with others : you look fantastic !
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Green: Okay....so 550 ccs, high profile, smooth round silicone implants - Mentor HPs. But if Allergan, this would be Style 20 HPs. Just covering all bases.
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Anybody know if it is easier to achieve symmetry for a UMX if they put in implant in the "good" side? I have lost about 15lbs since my finally fill so my TE side is a bit bigger than my native breast. My PS mentioned he could put in a small implant when he performs the lift if I want to be a bit bigger. I didn't want to go bigger necessarily, but I really really want as much symmetry as possible. Thoughts?
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Jamie: The answer is "yes" - it is easier to achieve symmetry if the PS uses a small implant on the native side. You might even look into having him use a Mentor Spectrum expandable implant on the native side. This enables the PS to add saline in very small increments over a period of several months and then when symmetry is achieved, the little port is closed off in the doctor's office. This means that you can allow the MX side to settle completely after the exchange, and then perfect the symmetry on the native side over a period of time, rather than just at the time of the exchange. Something to think about. I know two gals who have had it done this way and they have excellent symmetry.
Deborah
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thanks Deborah! you're right, 550
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Thanks Whippetmom - I'll give him a call.
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I posted here a few months ago about my unhappiness with my implant swap. To recap, my TEs were filled to 500 cc, which I thought was a great size, and my PS agreed, saying that the implants would probably be a little larger than the TEs. When I woke up from surgery, I found that he used 800 cc (Natrelle 45), instead of the @600 cc that we had briefly discussed (frankly, he was always dismissive about what I wanted, and his mantra was "relax -- you'll be happy with the end result). I am 5'5", 145 lb., and have a 33-inch ribcage, and if I remember correctly, Whippetmom, you said that 625 cc would have been a good size for me. I absolutely hate these implants, because they feel huge, heavy, and by the end of the day, they hurt. I've got an appointment with a PS at the Mayo Clinic in August to discuss a revision, but now I'm worried about another surgery. Even though I'm not happy with the implants, I have to admit that the PS did a good job, as I had no post-op problems, and I healed beautifully. There's no guarantee that would happen a second time around. And, I wonder how much of my discomfort is psychological -- do the implants really hurt, or am I thinking too much about how I hate them, and that's causing the discomfort? I guess my question is, should I go for it? Or learn to live with what I have? Are revisions normally successful? Thanks for any advice.
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Jamie -- that is a common thing and, especially in women whose native breasts were a little small, an excellent way to achieve symmetry. I've seen many beautiful results where the uni implant is matched with a small augment to the native breast (plus lift).
I am a uni but I was REDUCED and lifted (so adding an implant after that would seem silly). My result is that my natural breast has more ptosis than my implant... which is now, due to a 20+ pound weight loss since exchange, looking and feeling too big (so I will very likely have a revision early next year to a smaller implant on my MX side, plus another lift to the native side... since weight loss also made the native breast droopier and smaller).
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Thanks for your response Lilah. I really didn't want to be any bigger, but I do want as much symmetry as possible so kinda in a quandary about which way to go. I think at this point I'm just going to do the lift and continue to exercise and maybe I'll lose some more weight. Right now I've plateaued and I'm not sure if this is just where I'm going to stay. If I need an implant later on, at least I still have that option open. That's what I thinking right now. If you ask again in an hour or two, maybe my answer will be different!!! Not sure why this is so hard to decide. I thought the reconstruction would be the easy part.
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JoannaT - I'm sorry that you didn't get what you want.
Are you wearing a good bra? It could help with the weight but I'm not sure if it would alleviate the problem completely.
Revisions are not uncommon but there are always risks.0 -
Joanna: I am going to PM you with my email address. I think you should send me photos.
There are risks inherent with repeat invasive procedures. But the weight and excess volume on the chest wall which you describe could be problematic as well, and so in some cases, it is "which is the lesser of two evils?" So I could perfectly well understand why you might want to exchange the 800s for smaller implants. I do not recall anything about "625" ccs though - as there are no implants with that volume. At this point, I think you need to exchange to 650 ccs in Style 20. That would be a good size for your frame and the width matches that of your 800s.
Deborah
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Whippet mom, I pm'ed you a few days ago. Did it go through?
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whippetmom - since 2miracles brought it up ... so did I. You may well be swamped but did you get my PM?
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Uh oh. No, I did not receive one from either of you! How odd. Do you want to resend? Post here when you have done so. Try to cut and paste whatever you wrote previously...
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Wait..disregard. Somehow I had my notifications feature turned off and I have been using my iPhone the past few days. So I missed them somehow. Just found them. So sorry gals. I will respond tomorrow though. I broke my middle finger - right hand - today at the gym and typing too much text is too painful tonight.
Deborah0 -
I, too, am looking to achieve symmetry. I had an LD with TE placement on Dec 1, 2011 and a revision on June 13, 2012. The revision was to fill out the right breast as there was a small indent. Mostly, I am thrilled. I look down and see cleavage and the breasts look even in a bra (38 B but will be fitted again as the LD side is now larger/fuller and I seem to 'spill over' on the side) However, I know that the native breast will start to sag, even more than it does right now. And with the implant (200cc) my breast is now fuller and the positon of the missing nipple is more to the side than I would like My question is two fold 1) Nipple issues - which I will ask in another forum and 2) Can I wait one or two years before having another surgery/lift on the native breast or is the standard approach to acheive symmetry - or as close to it as possible- quickly?
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Hi, ladies. I was reading one of the health newsletters, maybe from CNN or USA Today, that we now have access to similar implants as the "gummy bears" found in Canada and Europe. Made by a company recently approved to sell in the U.S., Sientra, these are called "shaped implants." Should you wish to get these types of implants instead of the typical silicone implants, ask your doctor about them. More and more doctors are starting to use these new implants and really like them.
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Deborah- I am so sorry about your finger. Just thinking about how that could have happened at the gym makes me cringe.
No hurry on my question. I just wanted to make sure you got it. Hugs and prayers to you as you heal.0 -
Please help! I am not sure what to do. I was diagnosed with BC in Nov 2011. I under went chemo for 18 weeks and had a bilateral masectomy on June 27, 2012. I had tissue expanders put in place and am currently having them filled to the desired volume. I have done extensive research and had two sometimes three opinons before making decisions on docs and procedures. I am near the end of my journey and am very worried about the end results. I am worried that my PS may have botched my surgery. First of all, my under arms are a mess. It looks to me like it has been stitched too tight and I have a huge crater between my arm pit and the side of the tissue expander. The right is grossly more defined than the left. Also, the shape of the expanders is concerning. I think they may be placed too far in my under arm area. At the top, there is a definate ridge where my expander starts. I trusted this PS and now I am very concerned. Should I go have another PS take a look and tell me if everything is fine or not? Will my insurance cover this second opinion?
I have asked about my issues, the PS says he will do everything to correct the under arm area, he may have to use fat graphting which may not take and that I will have extensive scarring that I would not otherwise have. As for the top ridge, he says, he will do what he can but it won't be perfect or look like I did before surgery.
I was a very large D before my surgery. He gave me a 550 CC expanders and wants to only give me a 500 CC implant. I feel that I am tiny now and am very self conscious about the way I look.
Any advice would be appreciated! Lots of love to everyone!
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I'm sorry pnkldy. Maybe you should call your insurance and find out if a second opinion would be covered. GreenMonkey had problems with her 1st PS and had to switch midstream. You can look at her posts and maybe take a look at her blog.
Best wishes and keep up posted.
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pnkidy: Do you want to email me photos privately? If so, please send me a private message by clicking on my screen name and I will send you my email address. I need your height, weight, mfr and style of TEs and the recommended volume - not your fill level. It sounds as though you do need a second opinion and I would not think of going through the exchange until you have some assurances regarding sizing and how revisions will be performed. Also, let me know where you live and who you are currently seeing. You can do this privately via PM.
Deborah
Oh, and your ribcage circumference, measuring under the TEs.
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Thank you. I will follow up with an email. What in the world did we do before the internet and all these support sights? Lots of love girls! Keep your chins up and boobs out!
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Whippetmom - I'm SOOOO sorry about your poor broken finger!!! I know that must be terribly painful, although you now legitimately have cause to give folks the finger, I guess....
Is it casted or splinted? I got the splint for my broken thumb because I would have had to keep a cast dry.
Be very careful about texting and typing with the remaining fingers. You are still using muscles and tendons in your hand that can exacerbate the pain in your broken finger.
Gentle hugs!!!
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RE: My finger: Hooray - found out it is not broken - just dislocated! I am on the mend! It is much better today....
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So glad to hear it! Happy healing!
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pnkldy: Just emailed you back! You look great at this point! Not to worry!
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whippetmom, so glad its only dislocated!
pnkidy, I sent you a private message.
chelev, I think I was told I would have to wait until December... let me google it and see what I can find.
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Glad it was easily mended Whippetmom! Hugs!
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whippetmom so sorry to hear about your finger. Glad it was only dislocated but know that is painful as well.
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Hi Whippetmom,
Yahoo! So glad your finger is not broken. Now you can use that middle finger to tell cancer what you really think!
I am hoping you received my PM and pictures last week. I'm the one with the huge space between the tissue expanders. If you have a moment, I would love to have your opinion. I have 1 or 2 more fills to go and the gap is not narrowing.
Thanks and have a great day everyone. Off to work!
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