TE TROUBLE
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Prayers for you, Beth!
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Thanks, Cheryl,
Have the boo hood today for sure. Surgery time can't come soon enough !
Thanks for the prayers ,
Beth0 -
Best wishes on your surgery today, Beth. I've been reading along.
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To add, my infection was on my non-cancer side and the PS had to remove the Alloderm on that side. Additionally, I developed a weird kink/stabbing sensation (depending on certain movements) after this last fill (Friday) and it was on the non-cancer side. Fortunately, that has subsided. I'm not sure if the lymphatic massage therapist massaged it out or if it was just a temporary side effect of the fill (he put quite a bit in this time).
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Lee...I would bet it was related to the fill. I would have something like that occasionally after a fill.
Dnadebbs...you had me checking things out last night, since mine is on the lower pole. I can still see a very slightly pink color. You wouldn't notice it unless looking really hard. That thin skin from the infection area was also the Eason my implant had to be a little smaller.0 -
Whew. what a crazy 48 hours.
I did go to Seattle and spent the night February 13, 2013.
Thursday saw the doctor and she scheduled surgery for that afternoon: 4:30pm
We went in with two options: Do the total exchange to Mentor Smooth Ultra Round High Profile 535cc ( although my bilateral mastectomy was done just 4 months ago) or go in remove the problematic tissue expander and then continue expanding.
Although there didn't appear to be significant infection she chose to do the total exchange. I have been on Keflex and she had me on vancomyician for 12 hours.
I am home now. I have one drain. I also have the above mentioned implants which I know nothing about.
I trust her completely and wanted her to take a safe and conservative route, but now I have to translate what all this means. She did say we could make any changes at the time of nipple construction.
That's my story and now I have to learn about the implants.
Any and all comments or suggestions are most welcome. Really.
Beth
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I don't know anything about those implants, but I'm glad you're doing well! Don't worry about it being "only" four months, that's enough time to heal between surgery. It's the time my PS requires his patients to wait. Good luck!
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Beth,
Very glad to hear you are doing well and had total exchange.
Personally, I didn't investigate my implants... I trust my PS and let him make the decision. It's too soon for me to tell if I like the look, but do like the feel!
Glad you are home and resting... Let the healing begin
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Thanks so much and the healing is beginning.
Just not having the tissue expanders in is such a gigantic relief.
Pretty tired and pretty comfortable sitting on the couch !
BETH
And, yes I completely trust my PS. She's a real jewel
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Those of you that have finished reconstruction. Was the saline insert smaller than the largest amount of saline inserted in the Tissue Expander? Or was the insert larger? Does it matter?
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cindy - my implant on the right is exactly the size of the previously expanded TE, but the implant on the left is 25cc larger than the expanded TE was - it was done to achieve symmetry. I have two different size implants due to chest wall anomaly. My implants are silicone, not saline. Different plastic surgeons have different philosophies - some overfill the TE, then put a slightly smaller implant in, some use different shapes of implant, some like saline instead of silicone, some like the reverse. A lot of this is dependent of the individual patient - it is not a hard and fast set of rules, and this is something that is important to discuss with your plastic surgeon.
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Thank you for your comments SpecialK, I was probably overthinking my own situation. My TE was filled to 550cc and the insert was 600. The surgical line never completely healed. During the time that drain was in there was a couple of times that extra fluid spilled out around drain down my shirt. Then later infection set up and turned skin purple. I never had a fever but was still put in hospital for a week of IV antibiotics. Later insert was removed, due to the infection. Was wondering if I had been accidently set up for failure by insert being larger than TE had been filled. If there was no one else that was like that I would be more careful to remind PS of amount of TE filling. But, evidently that was not the key to the matter. Now, will wait the 3 months for healing and then decide as to whether to try again for a insert.
When they took out insert I thought I never would again try. But, in just these few days I am already thinking I will try again. Will be happy with a 300cc insert. Just want something there even if it is smaller than other side.
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cindy - many of us here on this thread understand your situation all too well - some have lost implants, some tissue expanders. I lost my left TE due to delayed skin healing from necrosis, not infection. It seems more of the ladies on this thread had infection problems, but at the end of the day our reconstruction has not gone smoothly. We all certainly sympathize and support whatever decision you make regarding trying again - we have all been in the frame of mind you are in right now! Keep us posted about what happens.
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Beth...congrats! They feel so much better dont they? I have Mentor High Profile also. Mine were supposed to be 475, but he had to do 425 due to the area of thinner skin. I think 475 would have been perfect on me. i wanted smaller and and an athletic look.Mine look great, but I wish they were a smidge bigger. When I saw him last month at my one year check up, he did say that if I would ever need a replacement, he could probably go a little bigger, now that things have calmed down, healed and stretched.
And I was three months on everything. Three months to get expanded, and then have them either removed or implants (they came out), three months to heal and then new expanders, three months to fill and then implants, three months to fat grafting 1, and then I actually waited six months for the final fat grafting.0 -
Cindy, Like Special K said every PS is different. Mine was of the philosphy that we should over fill. I was expanded to about 600cc but have 450cc silicone implants.
I was also 3 months on everything. Even my tatoo lady wants to wait 3 months before doing any touch ups.
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Cindy, I was 5+ months between stages: 5 months of trying to save the TE, five months without the TE; 9 months with the TE until exchange. (Oh, and 19 months with left TE waiting for righty to catch up) I was filled at BMX to 350ccs. I had one fill (which PS let me do myself) of 50cc's on each side. So LEFTY had a total of 400cc's and was exchanged to a 500cc Allergan Natrelle implant. RIGHTY was filled to 350 at BMX, reduced to 150 in an attempt to save the TE, then filled to 200 once new TE went in. After the one fill, RIGHTY had 250cc's and was exchanged for a 450cc implant. LEFTY, having had 19 months with a filled TE, had already dropped and fluffed and took the larger implant fine. RIGHTY is tight and sits high and 5 months post-exchange, has yet to drop. I don't expect much fluffing either; there is no room. Have been doing massage and also had PT for a month, but as I've mentioned I am still dealing with a rash and the PT was actually aggravating the rash so I stopped. I had a 2nd opinion dermo consult last week, he said it is dermatitis (allergic reaction), making him the 5th doctor to tell me that.
DM13 and Beth and everyone else, keep healing!
Olgah, how are you doing?
Hello to everyone!
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I had delayed LD flap on the right side (27 Dec 12) about 10 months after my last radiation treatment. Everything was going fine and I had a total of 400 cc without much discomfort. Before the last one, I slipped on the stairs and grabbed the bannister with my right arm. Everything seemed okay. Two days later I went for my fill and pointed out a blister in the suture line which proved to be a stitch abscess. This was drained and the PS assistant proceeded with the fill. She missed the port the first time and it really hurt. When she hit the port, it hurt again and she put in 100 cc. On the drive home I began to hurt and by that evening, had to take Percocet. The pain was so bad I couldn't go to work for a couple of days and it still hurts. I don't know if she overfilled or if I pulled the muscle over the TE when I slipped on the stairs. Either way, it has been very very uncomfortable and wearing a bra is excruciating. Has anyone else had a problem like this? Also, for those who have had only one side done, any advice on how to find a bra that can give me some symmetry. This new one is so high that I'm having a hard time pulling the old girl up there to match.
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MsBoniqua, perhaps also with the grab/fall you pulled a joint, ligament, or tendon. These additional pains would show up more with time than immediately. But, agreeing with you also the fillings, especially later ones were much more painful for a few days than the initial ones.
Rennasus, thank you for sharing your experience. I am deeply grateful for the many that keep coming back to offer insights into what is our present day experience.
SpecialK, again thank you for your wisdom. I often when frustrated tend to be rash, and again am reminded this is a marathon, and fast paced actions while successful for some, and I am glad for them, will not add to this process well. I will indeed, take my time, and deeply appreciate these many friends I am learning so much from.
(((Huggs))) and thanks to all! -Cindy
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As I read through all of our experiences I am struck by how brave and tenacious we are.
This stuff is certainly not for sissies.
I am so impressed with the strength and stamina this group has.
In admiration,
Beth
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Fluffqueen, the weird pinching sensation finally went away. I'm not sure if the lymphatic massage therapist helped move it around or if it was something as strange as trapped gas! She didn't think it could be that but who knows. Thankfully, it was gone - it was a very sharp pain whenever I would reach to the right to do anything.
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One thing is for sure... Every time I log onto this thread, always greeted with new members... New experiences... It's a shame so many are afflicted with TE issues, my thanks again to Ren for giving us all an outlet..
New gals are doing okay. Did notice a small lump on bad side, had it before exchange and PS said it was part of TE... Now still there... I am wondering what it is. Have to wait 2 weeks for next appointment.0 -
i, too, had TE issues. still healing as we speak. i had posted them earlier on in this thread. TE surgery on 1/3.......bad infection developed about a week and a half after.......ended up having to remove them on 1/30........still had an infection on the radiated side......two more weeks of antibiotics and it was still there. finally took me off of those and it doesn't seem to be infected now but looks like i just finished radiation again. very tight, dark brown......and in worse condition then prior to my initial surgery. my skin and everything had healed so well from the radiation and now it really looks awful. swollen. very sore still and the way she put it back together.....the scar tissue is probably what hurts the most now. she wants to wait 2 months to try again but i think i'm going to look at the DIEP option this time. everything i have read has said that this option is much better for radiated skin. and now that its worse then it was.......i honestly don't see how my current PS can salvage it. even if it worked out good next time with no infection......i think it would make it extra hard to make them both look the same. the other side is healing great with no problems. very soft skin. this side will take the implant and look fine......the radiated and now messed up again side will take forever to drop or be soft or match the other side.
am i wrong for thinking this? has anyone had this experience and still went with the TE's again?
and yes.....i read thru all our posts too and my heart goes out to every one of you. we have gone thru so much and now all we want to do is give ourselves the illusion that we are whole again.......is that so much to ask? lol! when they removed the TEs i told myself i wasn't going thru with this again because i had been in so much pain. now.......after reading everything that all you ladies have gone thru and still keep pushing forward......i can't pansy out now. i got this. i will try again.
when i was first diagnosed my girlfriend told me.....women are stronger than BC these days! and i sincerely believe that. thank you for all your encouragement......even tho you don't realize it!
ally
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I am finishing up PT this week and move on to exchange surgery on Monday Feb 25 - I am excited to get these rocks out and hope that I will be mainly pain free pretty quickly.
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So, just came from the PS and I have one more fill left. I'm at 460cc now and I'm concerned that at my final fill-520 I won't be big enough. My pre bc size was barely a B cup. I'd like to look like a woman after this not little girl!! I don't want to have porn star boobs, but a full B, small C would be nice. My PS uses Natrelle silicone implants. How can I make sure I end up with what I want?
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ShaneOak I was a very small B before all this. I told my PS that I wanted to be a solid C. He filled me to about 600 and used Natrelle high profile 450cc implants. I am very happy with what I got. I have cleavage now! I am tall which I think makes them look even bigger. I also had fat grafting to fill out the top area. If you trust your PS and have expressed your wishes to be a small C I would have to say they will probably turn out all right.
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I feel like there's finally light at the end of the tunnel. After having my drain removed (after 1 month!) I was worried I'd get an infection again and lose a TE. But all's well! It's softening up every day and looking great - no pain, they feel comfortable, and I'm still only on TEs
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shaneoak - you really should go the the "breast implant sizing 101" thread linked below and supply whippetmom with your info as outlined in the header. She will tell you her thoughts on what you should expand to and what implant will best meet your wishes for size.
http://community.breastcancer.org/forum/44/topic/746448?page=253#post_3432275
road - yay!
maa - yay for exchange!
dna - glad we could supplysome encouragement for you whatever your recon decision.
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SpecialK, I had forgotten about that thread! I'm headed over there now, thank you.
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hi guys
i FINALLY got my exchange date - march 4 - i need to get these a**holes out of my body..
shaneoak - how are you doing? i know we both had severe pain issues with the TE's and expansion. They are still tight but NOTHING like they were in the beginning. From reading the posts on the exchange thread i am starting to think i will not have that ahhhhhh moment when i get the implants.
is front sleeping out of the question forever? i miss that sometimes!!!!!
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Hey rozem, great that you have a date!! How exciting for you. Can't wait to hear how it goes and how you feel. Mine have gotten better. I still hate them but have learned that the damn things are here for a while. Let us know how it goes.
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rozem, I'm so happy to hear that you'll soon be rid of those tissue expanders!
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