Come join others currently navigating treatment in our weekly Zoom Meetup! Register here: Tuesdays, 1pm ET.
Weigh in: What are the best and worst gifts for people with breast cancer?
Share with us: What are your proudest moments of 2024 and personal goals for 2025?
Take our poll: How are you feeling as we near the New Year?

DIEP Flap Reconstruction 2016

1…7879818384…86

Comments

  • jcn16
    jcn16 Member Posts: 102
    edited January 2017

    Karen Aus, me too , although it's not quite pubic hair. It's the hair from from my lower abdomen. I was blond (now gray), so it's light. Hoping it'll stop when I get a new nipple. For now I just giggle and remind myself that it's another sign the flap is healthy. 😀

  • Katjadvm
    Katjadvm Member Posts: 117
    edited January 2017

    Oh karen. I didn't even think about that! I would definitely ask your plastic surgeon. they can do laser hair removal. Kelly

  • stellamaris
    stellamaris Member Posts: 313
    edited January 2017

    ha ha ha, and i thought there was nothing more to look forward to! hugs

  • cwayman650
    cwayman650 Member Posts: 63
    edited January 2017

    Thank you all for your prayers and well wishes. My surgery went well. It was 14hrs. long. The 1st couple of days were rough but every day I can feel improvement. It's so worth it. I'm 1 week out now and I came home yesterday. After I got a nap I took a shower. It was the best shower ever.

    KarenAus, I never thought about the hair growing on the flaps. I never thought about that. It will be interesting to hear the thoughts

  • KarenAus
    KarenAus Member Posts: 66
    edited January 2017

    2 and a half weeks and seems I have infected stitches in my left flap. I feel like crap and have been put on antis. This is my non cancerous side and the side I have had 4 previous infections in with the result of an trip to the theatre 6 months ago.. Hopefully it can resolve itself quickly.

    Karen Aus

  • phoebe58
    phoebe58 Member Posts: 96
    edited January 2017

    hi everyone - catching up here and sending healing hugs to all who need it. I am back from my stage 2 - as I didn't need a lot done I was booked to be awake in minor surgery for new nipples and one small kitten ear tweak. Everything else was pretty good already, and she didn't want to mess with the radiated side for minor adjustments as it can react poorly. Still protecting the new nipples with no bras and bandages and no heavy activity [surgeon had said they are rather like a mini-diep in that they rely on a good blood supply]. Overall I am very pleased and they add such a finished look. The radiated side with the crop circle of belly skin has a slightly flatter smaller nipple as that skin was thinner than the supposedly prophylactic side [where they had to go back and remove the nipple due to surprisingly finding cancer there too] which retained some areola tissue. I will do both areola tattoos in May at my PS office by her aesthetic specialist.

    Karenaus, sorry about your infection, and I did not have any hairs ….but I am sure they can be zapped out! I had always heard that hairy toes were a healthy sign of a good blood supply to feet, so I agree this can be interpreted as a good sign:)))

    cwayman - glad you are home and I remember how fantastic that shower was too after 2 weeks of sponge baths!!! You will continue to notice improvements daily, but take care not to do any heavy lifting or stretching too far -- I even used bbq tongs to remove wet stuff from dryer…..

  • MAPBB
    MAPBB Member Posts: 20
    edited February 2017

    Hello Group,

    It's Tuesday night and my surgery is Thursday morning. Tomorrow I'm going to meet the surgeons for the first time and finish up the pre op work. I'm starting to get very worried and not sure that I'll be able to sleep tomorrow night. Tell me it will all be OK. thanks!

  • jcn16
    jcn16 Member Posts: 102
    edited February 2017

    Mapbb, meeting with the surgeons may help calm your fears. I remember talking with mine in the pre-op along with the nurse and anesthesiologist and thinking that I was in good hands. It was very reassuring. We'll look forward to hearing from you when you are feeling up to posting.

  • cwayman650
    cwayman650 Member Posts: 63
    edited February 2017

    My surgery was last tues, the 24th. Every time I eat my belly gets really really bloated. Like someone put an air hose in and blew it up. Has anyone else had this problem? If so, what worked for you? I do have an appt. tomorrow morning with my p.s. Right now I'm miserable tho.


  • rgray1967
    rgray1967 Member Posts: 6
    edited February 2017

    ok ladies I have a question? I'm getting ready to have my surgery but surgeon want me to stop my anatrozole the wk before have any of you done that? I was scared to quit them.. Thank u all

  • rgray1967
    rgray1967 Member Posts: 6
    edited February 2017

    ok ladies I have a question? I'm getting ready to have my surgery but surgeon want me to stop my anatrozole the wk before have any of you done that? I was scared to quit them.. Thank u all

  • jcn16
    jcn16 Member Posts: 102
    edited February 2017

    Cwayman, I dealt with bloating too. It started as soon as I got home from the hospital. Definitely talk to your PS. I also found the nurse practitioner to be really helpful. You can usually call in during office hours and talk with a nurse or PA. The hospital's nutritionist might be able to suggest foods to eat /avoid. I had to watch my fiber and salt. Through trial and error I figured out what I could and couldn't eat. Small frequent meals worked best. Limiting my activity and wearing compression running pants helped. Hope you are feeling better soon.

  • Mombytheriver
    Mombytheriver Member Posts: 6
    edited February 2017

    rgray1967 my MO also had me stop taking the arimidex before my surgery. Apparently there is a slight increase in the risk for blood clot with arimidex and they like to avoid that with surgery

  • taag4
    taag4 Member Posts: 93
    edited February 2017

    KarenAus hope your infection is resolved quickly Im sure its a scary thing. I too have fine hair growing in certain spots. I was going to just pull them out but was afraid of infection or ingrown hair. I will leave them for now and deal with it some time down the road when this is all over with.

    Cwayman I was having some bloating and just started making sure I ate more frequently and stayed away from foods that would have bloating properties. That seemed to help.

    Mapbb you should be in surgery now. Im thinking about you and hope you have a speedy recovery.

    Phoebe58 sounds like things went well and you are happy with your results. That is the main thing. Congratulations, thats all we can hope for.

  • Simplicity
    Simplicity Member Posts: 723
    edited February 2017

    KarenAus, how are you feeling?

    Mapbb, update when you can?

    Prayer request for one of our DIEP sisters, Dlia, who is still having healing issues :(

    Hugs and healing vibes out to any others having healing issues.


  • KarenAus
    KarenAus Member Posts: 66
    edited February 2017

    Better than last week. I went to a horse comp for the weekend, I did nothing but be company and take pics. I felt like i had done the actual riding. Bit tired this week. I am on 2nd lot of Abs due to there still being redness in the infected area. Other than that and still being sore and stiff I am doing really well. Saw PS Friday and he said I can start building up and riding in 3 weeks and I can get rid of this corset at the end of this week. Thank goodness for that. I had to take it off Saturday or end up with heat exhaustion, was over 30c where we were.

    KarenAus

  • tanyarocks30
    tanyarocks30 Member Posts: 53
    edited February 2017

    Happy February everyone! I don't post much but I come on and read still. For all the new people, it does get easier and read through the entire thread if you have time. So much valuable info!

    I saw my PS on Jan 26 to discuss next (& hopefully) final stage (except nipples). Got a call Feb 2 (one week later) with a date of Monday Feb 13. SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO here we go! She will try to reshape my left side that the removal of the fat necrosis left back in July, lift both sides, reduction on right to match left. removal of dog ears and will fat graft from there to the dent in the left.

    Can't wait to get this healing started!!!

    Thinking of all of you.


    T

  • stellamaris
    stellamaris Member Posts: 313
    edited February 2017

    tanya, thinking of you and sending healing vibes. I had my left balancing reduction done in April and so happy with the results. My fipple in the spring.

  • farmerma
    farmerma Member Posts: 32
    edited February 2017

    Saw my PS yesterday. I'm six weeks out from getting my nipple and he's thrilled with how it looks. He says it's still going to settle some more but gave me the info for tattooing. He said don't get it done until the end of March (3 months out), but I should call now to get on their schedule. The place sounds great, they are in a medical office building and specialize in permanent makeup and scar coverage. Here I was thinking I was going to be in a regular tattoo parlor getting inked by a big guy with tats all over him. Shocked Best part is, they asked about my insurance and said they would bill my insurance and they would just take whatever they got from them--I won't receive any bill! Woohoo! So, I've got my calendar marked for March 24th!!! Could this REALLY be almost over???

  • pnwgram
    pnwgram Member Posts: 5
    edited February 2017

    Hi, I've been lurking for a while now, just recently got on this thread. Had bmx last May, with tissue expanders, thinking I would just go with implants, since I got freaked out when the plastic surgeon tried to tell me about the various flap procedures. At the time, I was so overwhelmed with everything. Now I've scheduled the exchange surgery for April, & I'm really leaning towards DIEP, especially after reading everybody's posts. You ladies are amazing! You're so helpful, informative, & encouraging, & I'm so inspired. Now I'm trying to find a surgeon in the Seattle/Tacoma area. My plastic surgeon said there were some good ones up in Seattle, & I got a couple of names, but I'm hoping there's someone here who can give their recommendation.

  • Mom4four
    Mom4four Member Posts: 63
    edited February 2017

    Pnwgram, I had DIEP at uw medical center last July. It's a great team of surgeons, very skilled. My plastic surgeon is Dr. Shannon Colohan.

  • pnwgram
    pnwgram Member Posts: 5
    edited February 2017

    Thanks so much, Mom4four!

  • Help3
    Help3 Member Posts: 35
    edited February 2017

    has anyone had their diep surgery help wiith lymphedema? I have left arm and hand lymphedema and have not started any reconstruction yet. I've seen 2 surgeons so far...I'm 5'6", 144 lbs. I feel fat but they tell me I'm thin for diep. Expanders are not possible for me after non skin sparing mastectomy and my current radiation so diep is my only option is think.

    Advice?

  • Simplicity
    Simplicity Member Posts: 723
    edited February 2017

    Morning ladies.

    Help3, I didn't have options either due to the damage from radiation, and lymphnode involvement. Not sure that DIEP would help alleviate lymphadema. I stay at high risk, but have been lucky so far. Have you seen a lymphadema specialist? I like mine. She is so knowledgeable and specializes in lymphadema.

    Hope all have a good day. Prayers and healing vibes to any and all dealing with slow healing issues.


  • Hammie28
    Hammie28 Member Posts: 29
    edited February 2017

    Hello all. I am scheduled for DIEP surgery on February 28. My doctors recommended delayed reconstruction with DIEP pretty much when I was diagnosed. So I've been reading along here from time to time but haven't posted since mine is a 2017 surgery. Will there be a 2017 thread or should I just follow along here?

  • MAPBB
    MAPBB Member Posts: 20
    edited February 2017

    Hello Everyone,

    It's now two weeks since my BMX and DIEP flap reconstruction and I'm back home in Michigan. I traveled to New Orleans for the surgery. It went much better than I expected. Immediately after meeting with the surgeon, I realized that I was in good hands and stopped worrying. I didn't even take the Valium that they prescribed for the night before surgery. Instead, we headed out for a night in New Orleans. Surgery was 7 hours and they did give me two bags of blood at the end of surgery. The first three days of recovery were pretty horrible but I slept through most of it. I was suppose to be released from the hospital after 3 nights but asked to stay an additional day and night. After that, I was in a hotel for 3 nights before the drive back home. 3 out of 4 drains came out before the drive home. The drive wasn't too bad as I had good pain meds and even started weaning off of them. After getting home, I started experiencing more pain in the breast area and have had to take all of the pain meds. Now, I'm waiting for the swelling to decrease and resting while looking forward to getting back to my regular life.

  • BigSister-2015
    BigSister-2015 Member Posts: 298
    edited February 2017

    pnwgram, I am so happy with my DIEP. I started out with implants and after two infections went with the DIEP. My foobs are soft and warm and feel so natural. They will age with me, and I'll never have to worry about future exchanges or complications that are an issue with implants. I recently met a young woman who had bilateral implants, and she really hates them.

  • BigSister-2015
    BigSister-2015 Member Posts: 298
    edited February 2017

    Hammie, it would be good if someone would step up to he plate and start a 2017 thread. I see that jlstacie hasn't updated the surgical list since November, so I think she is done, which she should be!

    Any takers? It is easy.

  • jbdayton
    jbdayton Member Posts: 163
    edited February 2017

    I can host a 2017 thread if you want. I will set up a new thread. I will just be out of pocket for a few days (this Sunday thru Tuesday). I amTraveling to PRMA for this revision.

    I am having a stage 2 #6 this Monday. This will be my final surgery. I am praying for a good final product this time.

    Even with all the complications I experienced I would definitely chose a DIEP or tissue flap surgery again.

  • BigSister-2015
    BigSister-2015 Member Posts: 298
    edited February 2017

    Wow, JB, you are looking great! You certainly went through the ringer--so glad you are finally coming to the end. I read through the entire 2014 DIEP thread preparing for my 2015 surgery. You ladies were such a blessing to me!

    If you have the time to host a 2017 thread, the ladies here would certainly benefit. I would, but I am still struggling with the effects of my 2015 sepsis (from infected implants). So happy with my DIEP!

Categories

Join Us on Zoom: Upcoming virtual meetups. Read more...
Give your account some personality! Add a profile photo.