Unilateral mastectomy & reconstruction
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Anybody had good results after having tissue expender after radiation? Just not shure what to do, I met with the surgeon this morning she said she could do it but but with a 90% success because of the radiated skin. She also mention alloderm to compensate for the lack of tissue. Did anybody had alloderm in their procedure?
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I think that even if they don't match (which I don't believe they will) I will still be happy I have one natural breast. Mine never really matched before so no big deal. My left was always bigger and rounder than my right (which interestingly enough is the side that had cancer).
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I have Alloderm, although I did not have radiation. It is used to make the pocket for the tissue expander. I believe it is a fairly common practice.
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I am just home from my natural breast lift as my surgery was this am, right now I have a burning pain around the nipple area, going to take a pain med and go to sleep, no shower for a week and no lifting for 2 weeks, ugh,,,,,go back to PS next week, but on the good note,,,,, no drains and 1 more surgery down!!!! And 1 more, hopefully last one to go,,,,,, have a great day to everyone and as much pain free healing to my sisters who have had surgery, and to my sisters waiting for surgeries,,,, hang in there, it will be worth it,
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Jeanie - thanks for the update - it sounds like you are doing pretty good on the whole or you wouldn't/couldn't want to post. Take the pain meds and head off to lala land - you deserve it! Keep us posted on your progress. Good wishes for smooth and short recovery!
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Jeanie - great to hear from you so soon after your surgery. Best wishes for a speedy recovery. I'm interested to hear how you feel about the lift once you have had a chance to heal. Originally my PS said he would lift my natural breast for symmetry. Now I'm not so sure I want another surgery. I am not very big at all so the new foob (flap boob) and my natural breast are not that far off. We'll see what happens after rads. #6 of 28 today.
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good morning everyone.... so it was not a very good night,,, i never did sleep when i got home and barely slept last night,,, turns out my pain med(dilaudin) had the opposite effect on me,,,, took care of pain, but noit sleep...finally about 5am i took a xanax and flexeril and slept until 7am....i am very sore today,,, some burning, and swelling, but that is to be expected, another day down from my final countdown.....hopefully catch a few catnaps today,,,,, I am very happy with my decision to move forward as I too was happy with the symetry before this lift with clothes on you coulldn not tell anything,,,i adore my PS and know that he is going to give me the best results with what he has with minimul scarring,, will get to see it in a week,,,, will keep you posted,,,, hugz and good thoughts.... J
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jeaniebeanie1200- rough nights are never fun and we seem to get more than our fair share. So glad you are happy with your decision. You are on your way to a great result!!!
Ally
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thank you Ally2345' yes we do get more than our fair share,,,, can't wait till unveiling next week, you MUST be happy with your decision , and have total trust in your PS , if you are not , move on to another,,,, whereabouts in Florida are you??? I am on the west coast, about 70 mikes north of Tampa... J
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day 3 after breast lift and it is getting much better, still hard to sleep at night, just can't get comfortable, this to will go away in time, hope everyone is having a great day,,, hugz n sunshine to all. .... J
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Great to hear Jeanie, sound like your on the way to recovery! Thanks for posting the updates, it helps with knowing what we are facing in the very near future!
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Not me on going with the BMX. I like my lumpectomy breast way better than my uni breast right now. I would feel even worse if they both looked like my uni side. I wanted to at least have one breast with feeling and my own nipple if at all possible. When doing my lumpectomy, my PS gave me a lift, moved my nipple up, and put in a small TE so we can get symmetry at exchange time. I think this was a good option for me. Like you Frostecat-I am lopsided right now. I have been using padded bras though to make myself look more even for now in clothes-it has helped. I hate the highness and the hardness of my Uni TEs.
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I'm using a poof on my uni side and tightening up my bra strap as much as it will go on my normal side for maximum lift. I can't remember if I wrote it on this thread or not, but I finally found a bra that worked for me. It is a Playtex Play bra, the Ultitasker. No underwire and pretty soft at the bottom, plus still has straps that I can adjust the lift, unlike the Genie bra, which doesn't work for me at all unless just sitting around the house.
I leave the strap as loose as I can on the TE side, like you said, it's high and hard enough!
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I will be having a revision in one week, exchanging my current implant for a slightly smaller, lower profile anatomical one, with the hopes that it will better match my reduced/lifted side. My current implant sits higher than my natural breast and looks much fuller. If I'm wearing a tighter shirt, it sometimes pulls the collar/neck to one side a little. I realize that my two breasts will never be a perfect match, but I am hoping for just a bit more symmetry. I sometimes wonder if it would have been easier to have gone with a BMX, but I really do like having one real breast with some feeling.
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Bosom - yes I will - need it desperately!
Monis - gosh just when you probably thought you were done with it all. I thought to myself, by the time the PS gets done reducing, maybe I would have just been better with the BMX too. I hope when all is said and done, I will feel like I made the right decision, even though right now, not too happy with my decision.
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Mine didn't say that. My BS said I don't need to have a BMX, . PS kind of left it up to me, and didn't really push me one way or the other. But to be honest it was all such a fog then, and I've learned so much more about all of this since. Had to make a lot of decisions quickly and while not informed. I don't recall anyone telling me however that "for months you will be extremely lopsided, and wearing clothes, let alone bathing suits will present a challenge". My PS said afterwards in one of my appointments, that yes he can achieve better symmetry with both being the same, but also keeps telling and showing me results from a UMX that look great.
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good evening Frostecat, I am 4 days out from my lift and I am getting stronger every day, not so much pain anymore, just soreness,, I see my PS on Wednesday and I am very excited to see the outcome, my PS did not suggest taking the healthy breast,that did not make sense as my BRACCA test came back negative so I too wanted to keep my own breast with feeling. We are all different and what works for me might not work for someone else. I am a bartender by trade and some what vain so for me to lose both was not an option, and you are right about it hPpening so fast,so many decisions to make without any knowledge in the beginning. It is a journey for all of us, one we did not choose but have to live it,,, I hope everyone is happy with their progress, I guess I am very fortunate that I have a "good" outcome so far,,,, what happens down the road I have no control over, so I have one more surgical procedure to do and I can go back to my life without drs appt every week and procedure monthly,,, I can't wait,,,, hugz to all..... J
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My PS understood how personal the decision was. He did not advocate one way or the other. He said his job was to make me look great no matter what I decided. I love that about him. He was very good about answering every question I had (and there were hundreds). I did have neoadjuvant chemo so I had months to research, ask questions and change my mind many times before my actual surgery.
Bosom - I'm like you in that I have very little worry about my natural breast. When I allow myself to go to that place, which is not very often, I worry much more about a distant reoccurrence.
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Jeanie - glad to hear you are doing well. Funny I just had this conversation with my boss today. We were talking about my upcoming surgery in September, and she said "my gosh won't it be a relief to get this all behind and over" and my answer "YES!" Looking forward to being done with this. Will always be looking over my shoulder, but the reconstruction part will be over. Well except for Vinnie!
Aff - I believe that is how my PS felt too.
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Jeanie - glad you are doing well. You sound so happy and upbeat. I'm excited to hear about your appt on Wed.
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Jeanie- What a great post!! Always fun to share these happy moments and even better that you are happy with your result. Hope your appt on Wed goes well! Keep feeling great...it is contagious!
Ally
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hi everyone, I am happy to have found this board. I had UMX with immediate DIEP on. 6/20. As I read all your posts, learning about the options to achieve symmetry, I am considering a reduction or lift so that my natural breast matches the reconstructed side. So far I am satisfied with the appearance and size of the reconstructed side, I like that it is a little smaller and firmer. But I worry that any surgery to my remaining breast may affect reading of mammograms. Does anyone have any experience with this?
I see my PS later this week so will also discuss options with him.
I also thank you all for sharing your stories so that we can support each other.
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I haven't had the exchange surgery as of yet, but was told I would continue on a yearly mammogram schedule as before. I do have this horror of horrors fear however, that when the PS does my lift/reduction and sends the tissue he removes to pathology, that breast cancer is there. I really couldn't think of anything worse, but I guess that is the part of moving forward but always looking over the shoulder.
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I also had a UMX with immediate DIEP in March 2013. I went into my PS consult thinking BMX with TE but my PS had other plans. Because rads were on the table, he said I would have a better outcome with DIEP. I did not have enough fat to do both so he said he could just do the one and because I am only a 34B, symmetry would not be a problem. I consulted both my BS and MO who agreed there was no medical reason to remove the good breast. Because I had a skin and areola saving surgery, I woke up with a reconstructed nipple. It honestly felt like I just had work done on my breast and it looks pretty much like a slightly beat up version of the good one. I had one revision about 6 months after rads (it did hold up great by the way) and I declined to do anything to the good side as they do match pretty well. I now get an annual mammo/sono of the good side as well as a biannual exam by my BS and my MO checks it every 3 months and for now I am comfortable with that. I have a small divot but quite frankly I am done with surgery and procedures. I had 6 rounds of TCH with H for a year, the surgery plus rads. I'm taking my Tamoxifen and trying to get on with my life. If you can live with the annual anxiety, I think a UMX is a perfectly fine way to go and I am happy with how things worked out.0 -
Thanks Rmanmom - it's good to hear from someone who has completed this journey, and are happy with the results!
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hey girl,,, me toooo I was scared to death about them finding cancer while doing the lift,,,,,, wait for it,,,,,,, wait for it,,,,,,, there is NO EVIDENCE of Cancer on my natural breast!!!!!!!, I was soo relieved when my PS told me that,,,, my healing is coming along great,, swelling is going down and i have feeling in my nipple,,,, (thank you lord), at this point it is more sensitive than normal.... I go back to PS on Wednesday to remove my stitches... so far so good,,,,,, I hope everyone is have great results and hugz to all....J
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I saw my PS today and I'm scheduled for my exchange on the right on September 17. I have a choice of having the nipple formed at the time of the exchange or waiting. My intent is to wait because I'm concerned that if it is done at the time of the exchange, after the implant has gone through the "drop and fluff" that I hear so many mention, the new nipple won't be in alignment with the native side.
Are others doing the nipple with the exchange or waiting to do it later?
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Jeaniebeanie - Woo Hoo way to go!
Scuba - my PS was going to create my nipple from the natural side. He normally uses skin from the aerola to create the new nipple, as the aerola tends to grow larger with age. Mine however is not the case, so at my last appointment he told me he wouldn't be able to do it with the size of my aerola, but "don't worry" we can always reconsctruct the nipple at a later date. UGH - I totally want to be done with surgeries. I think I am opting for a 3d tat before another surgery. I'm hoping to wrap up everything this year (2014) as far as surgeries go, the tat may have to wait. But I so want to put this year behind me.
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I had a UMX and a lift with small implant on the other side. Getting a close match is more challenging than a BMX and the PS's skill is very important.
Another thing that you have to keep in mind is weight fluctuation. I am 5'- 2" and thin, at the time of my first exchange I was carrying extra weight from chemo so I got a 550 cc implant which matched my other side perfectly. However, after a year I lost the extra weight, well, one breast got smaller so I became uneven. I had a revision and got a 450 cc. It has been 2 years since the last revision and I have reached my ideal weight, so they match well. The MX side is a little wider but the projection is even.
Overall, I am very happy with my results. I can wear strapless tops or backless dresses with no bra and they look normal.
scubalady, I would definitely wait until everything is "settled" to get the nip.
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Had my implant exchange and nipple/areola reconstruction today. All went well - I'm all wrapped up in an ace bandage for a couple of days, so can't take a peak yet. My skin graft site is quite sore. PS took skin from low on my abdomen, where I already have a scar from a c-section years ago. I'm excited for the unveiling, but not thrilled with the prospect of having to wear the nipple bandaging/guard. I'm hoping it won't make dressing too difficult. I certainly hope this new implant will give me a little more symmetry
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