Lumpectomy Lounge....let's talk!
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Hello Ladies, On seatbelts, I used a stuffed teddy bear for both post lumpie and when rads got rough. I found it helpful and adorable.
ChiSandy, I am still working on bras, and now may not have the surgery
until after some drug treatment. Good grief.PET scan did not go well. Just out of mediastinum node biopsies (ugh, my throat), waiting on those results and brain MRI. It's the waiting that drives you crazy, I swear. Hubbie (physician) said, it actually does take days for staining and prep of biopsies, so I grumble under my breath and just survive for results. DREADING the conversation with my kids. My care is in VA and the kiddos are in CA.
So wonderful to get all the great tips here.
All the best.
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MovingSoccerMom, waiting is terrible! Praying for good results!
Many, many HUGS!!!
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moving, fingers crossed. (My husband's also a physician).
stella, if you are currently a 44A, and have not been professionally fitted, you might be wearing the wrong size bra. 70-80% of American women are wearing at least one band size too big &/or one cup size too small. (I'm the resident bra-vangelist around here). The cup volume of a 44A is the same as that of a 42B or 40C. If you can't get to a good (unfortunately, likely pricey) bra store to be measured, look at yourself iin a mirror n profile, wearing your most often-used bra, while holding your forearms level, bent at the elbows. If the nipple-point of your bustline is lower than your elbows, you are not getting enough support. If the band is riding up in back even when fastened on the middle hooks, it's at least an inch (or more) too big. If you are not unusually slope-shouldered (like me), slipping straps are also a sign of a too-big band and inadequate support: the band & cups should provide almost all the support. Now, face forward and ook at the cups--if you are getting "dog ears" or "bat wings" on the sides & your armpits, or if the top of the cups is tight against your skin and causing the tops of your breasts to protrude, your cups are too small. Look at the center gore (the part of the bra that lies between the cups). It should lie absolutely flat against the center of your chest, with each breast contained separately in its cup. If it bulges out to the point where--when you're wearing a blouse or shirt over the bra and your bustline looks like a "balcony" or "uni-boob," the cups are too small--even if you've gone up a band size or two to get more volume, If the top of the cups is wrinkling, the cups are too big.
Sites like thirdlove.com, true&company.com, BareNecessities.com and HerRoom.com have fit quizzes you can take to determine if you're wearing the right size bra. If you mention a bra you have that touches all the right bases/ticks all the right boxes, HerRoom's algorithm will tell you what size cup and band to buy in another brand or style. For instance, my best-fitting bras are an Elomi Cate in 40H or ThirdLove 24/7 T-shirt bra in 40G. According to that algorithm (and confirmed when I actually go to Rigby & Peller or Nordstrom to try on bras), Elomi/Goddess Caitlyn in 40G, Empreinte 40E, Chantelle 40FF, Wacoal 42DDD, or PrimaDonna 40H/I are my best alternate fits. (True & Co., Olga, Bali, Maidenform, Warner's or Danskin don't offer any of those sizes; and Lane Bryant's largest cup sizes, which on paper ought to fit, still pooch out at the center gore).
BTW, ThirdLove offers half-sizes in its smaller cup sizes (e.g. A+ or B+).
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ChiSandy, thanks for the info. The band is definitely a 44 the cup is the iffy part. I completed the quiz in the third love site and my measurements came back as 44 a. I saw my new PS yesterday & we discussed my concerns again, he also identified the same issues I had when I first saw him in Feb. We created my corrective surgery plan for mid July, so my patience will be tested until after my surgery & recovery time to see what size I will be. He’s removing excess skin & fat from the under arms to the breasts so my size will definitely change once the skin, fat & swelling are gone. I will be referring back to your reply!
When I headed home from surgery my breastcancer center navigator gave me a heart shaped pillow made by a breast cancer survivor and it helped with cushion & comfort from the seat belt.
MovingSoccerMom the waiting game is definitely difficult keeping you & your family in my prayers 🙏
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Fingers crossed for you Movingsoccermom!
My pathology report came back today with clean margins and nodes. Now onto chemo. I bought a couple of bras that are higher in the sides like the underarm smoothers. My straps having been rubbing in my port so I McGuyvered a protective pad from a nipple pad for breastfeeding moms and adhesive Velcro. I am amazed that there are no products like a port protector or an alternative to putting a sock in your bra to cover the node incision.
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Congrats Dogmomrunner! Great to have clean margins, and to be moving on to your next step. Best wishes for your chemo treatments.
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Dogmomrunner, Good news! That's great, and now you can move forward. 😊
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Dogmomrunner, do I sense a "Shark Tank" opportunity in that idea for a port protector?
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Ha! I'm not sure that I am crafty or entrepreneurial enough for Shark Tank. There is a commercial one out there through Pressure Products called a ComfortHer Post Surgery Bra Strap Pad which looks like it would do better. I will probably order one of those. My nipple pad pokes out from under my shirt occasionally and looks like it was put together by a two year old.
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hello ladies,
Because everyone has so much experience i thought let me ask my question on this site
I had a benign lumpectomy (excisional biopsy) may 2018. After surgery immediately there was a ridge below the scar. Now a year later i feel another hardish rubbery thing (scar tissue??) above the ridge which is painful when rubbing it too much. Went for an US and she said just a bit irregular but totally not concerned. No malignant features. So i am a bit less stressed but still a bit anxious... Do you know how they can see the difference? To me it looked as a cancerous mass but the report stated no mass. She is a great radiologist so i quess she knows what she is doing.
And can scar tissue a year after surgery develop??
Thank you all for the response!!
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Sigh, bras.
I am still in the surgical bra they gave me, which I alternate with one I found online, which is nicer but still pretty fugly. The reason: When I try the conventional bras I've purchased, my breasts get sore. Maybe it's just too soon, I'm only 19 days out. I'm healing well, so that's not it. Or maybe soreness in the breasts at this point is just normal. Who knows? It's a low grade soreness. LIke, I know they're there.
ChiSandy you really are a bra whisperer. I wish you'd been around in my 20's and 30's when I was convinced for years I was a 34B, always struggling with bands that rode up. Well lo and behold BFF takes me to get properly fitted and I was actually a 32D or a 30DD depending on the brand. Yessir. Quite the difference. Who knows what I am now, I am trying to be patient. I've also always worn underwires, so that's going to be different. I found some really pretty ones and kept my band size the same and guesstimated a B cup because that's what plastic surgeon estimated. I'll try them again in a week or two and see if I am less sore. Interestingly, I'm not sore when I go bra-less. But then I don't do that for very long, so that's probably why. I'm just not willing to get properly fitted and spend money on fine bras until after radiation and everything else is done, and I"m completely healed. In the meantime, I'm guessing. And I really hope that radiation doesn't do too big a shrinking number on my right breast because I must say they are looking quite adorable right now (aside from the scars and some scabs, bien sur).
I had a horrible time with the sentinel node biopsy getting rubbed by any and all bras after they removed the dressing. But that's over now.
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I found a couple of bras that are lower cut in the armpit and are wire free. I usually wear a 34C or medium but got one in xxl so the band is loose. So my bra is basically a camisole. I have developed a seroma in my armpit so the loose bra is better.
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I had my one year mammogram, all clear. Whew. Had a PET scan and biopsy on the kidney bed. All clear, but I aged a few years waiting for those results! Now I have one more medical issue (aortic aneurysm) with an appointment in a few weeks. Hey, I might be able to start planning my life again soon if all goes well!
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Wow, Alice! Kidneys, breasts and now the heart! You have had a heck of a year! Keep us posted on the aneurysm
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Yay on the clear mammogram! Fingers crossed for more good news
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Alice, YAY on the good news!
Sadly, the nodes came back metastatic, so I guess they are assuming the node in the lung is also. Will meet with the pulmonologist on Monday and then who knows. Truly a nightmare.
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Movingsoccermom- I’m sorry to hear this news. I wish I were more knowledgeable about this and could give you some words of comfort. But know that we are here for you.
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Aw, movingsoccermom, I'm so sorry to hear that. I hope whatever treatment you'll get is a fast-acting one.
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Thanks for the information
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Mom2bunky, on the bra front I found these Bali Comfort Revolution that have some padding and support but are really stretchy. They come in basic S, M, L, etc and I found them at Kohls. I'm almost 6 months out from surgery and still find wearing a normal bra not comfortable and underwire is a no no right now. As for shrinking it will happen, sorry. My PS purposely left me a little larger and now it is a little smaller. Good Luck!
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Thank you Alice!
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Movingsoccermom...Thinking of you!
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Thank you Carpediem!
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Thank you mymomsgirl!
I’m thinking if you too movingsoccermom
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I had my lumpectomy yesterday. I had to go to two different but connected buildings for the guide wire procedure and surgery. The wire was sticking out about 3.5 inches so they put an inch or so of gauze pads notched out around it and then she taped a styrofoam cup over the wire to potect it. I wish that I had taken a picture. Has anyone else experienced anything like this?
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Shadow - that’s how they thought my lumpectomy would go but they didn’t need the wire after all
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Shadow I had the wire procedure in one building and was moved to another connected building. There was some wire sticking out but they taped a 4x4 gauze pad over it. A styrofoam cup 8s a new one.
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Shadow: I also had the wire procedure...but I did manage to get a picture of it before it was all taped up; in fact my BS had to take the picture as I was having problems doing it myself !
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Shadow - I also had the wire procedure in one building & then went via wheelchair to connected building. Mine was sticking out a bit & covered with gauze.
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Shadow63- I was wheelchaired to another floor, same building. Mulitple mammograms to get it 'set' correctly, thought I'd pass out, as I sat in something akin to a dentist chair (go figure), but I never ever saw it.
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