December 2020 Surgery Group
Comments
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AnnC2019 - I hope the Cipro is helping. Please don’t hesitate to call your doctor. They would want to know of any changes you are experiencing so they can help you.
Stacey - thank you for sharing your reduction experience. I’m glad the reduction and lift was an easy recovery. I’m five days out from mastectomy and still having discomfort. It’s not unbearable or terrible, but it’s getting tiring and and I’m getting a little frustrated. Some of recovery has been easier than I envisioned and some has been harder. Harder trumps easier so this is just hard.
Bennette - great news that your lymph nodes are clear! I think ups and downs are certainly to be expected. I know I am having them, too. I’m trying to take one day at a time. Sometimes I’m good at that and sometimes not so much. I’ve seen a thread that might be about husbands. I’ll see if I can spot it and what it is.
Mtspacekace- you are an inspiration! I hope you are having an enjoyable evening with family 😊
Blue1002 - welcome to this thread! You ARE a strong person. You have been presented with a lot to deal with. Recovering from mastectomy is not easy. I’ve really struggled at times, and I had a unilateral mastectomy which has to be lots easier than BMX. Be patient with yourself. There will be tough days for sure. But you will get through them. Please keep us posted on how you are doing. I’m thinking of you!
After surgery, do any of you have skin pain? Like someone rubbed and rubbed your skin (but you don’t have a sore). It’s driving me a bit bonkers. Its mainly below my collarbone to my armpit. It hurts if nothing is touching it, and hurts more if something even brushes my skin. I don’t know if it’s nerve pain or the tissue expander or what. I also would like to know who invented these compression post surgicalbras. They aren’t even soft! And it’s too tight 🙁 Are you having to wear one? Any tips on making these drains more comfortable would be appreciated too! I’m kind of a mess this evening 🥴
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Hopeful, I had that burning skin pain in my armpit that they removed the lymph node from...it lasted about 2 days, i thought it was maybe my brobe rubbing, and my husband checked it out and it wasn’t red or swollen...I made sure I did my excercises and it seemed to go away. I figured it was just a healing pain, or I overdid it a bit. Today I put on a zip up sweatshirt, and it had pockets made from the pockets on the inside...I put my drains in there, and coiled the hoses up in there, and it has been the most comfortable I have been all week. Someone suggested wearing the sweatshirt inside out if it doesn’t have the inside pockets, so you can put the drains in the pockets. This made it so the bulbs weren’t hanging off my clothing and the hoses weren’t hanging or rubbing...it seemed to make me more comfortable. Hopefully you can find something that works for you!!
Also, I have to wear the bra as well, but I feel it’s pretty comfortable. I have weird pains underneath my expander, where the bra band is, but I don’t think that has anything to do with the bra. Taking it off and getting a shower is quite nice. But overall it’s comfy....it’s a satin-like fabric kind of. I just ordered a black one from Amazon, I’ll link it.
Carole Martin Full-Freedom Front Closure Wireless Comfort Bra for Women https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FGAODC0/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glc_i_POa6FbCRJXYAG
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Thank you morningstardust for sharing your experience with AC-T! Of course I’m imagining the worst so it’s good to hear it doesn’t HAVE to be that awful. I’m worried about nausea and neuropathy (my mom went through this a couple years back and is cancer free but has neuropathy in her foot as a result of what in hindsight was overly aggressive chemo).
Hopeful I also have that super sensitive skin thing! Especially on my left side where I had nodes removed. Drives me crazy! Almost reminds me of a sunburn where you just can’t stand to have any clothes touching it. I got my last drain out last week and told the surgeon to throw that bra in the trash. Hope you get to get rid of it soon too! My bra had a Velcro closure in the front and it helped to just fasten the top past of it and leave the bottom loose or if I was just lying in one place for a while I’d unfasten it totally. So it just hung loose like a vest and supported the weight of the drains but wasn’t “chafing” me. Also sometimes I’d stuff ice packs in there and that made it feel better temporarily. Maybe some of that might help!
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any one experiencing swelling in your “mastectomy” shoulder? My shoulder blade area and under my arm is so swollen today. No node removal so I find it odd. Seeing the doctor tomorrow. So that will be my first question. Hoping she removes the drain! Fingers crossed on that! Hope everyone is doing w
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I had a double mastectomy with expanders put in for reconstructionon 12/9 and was doing good until a couple of days ago I have started having a burning/raw sensation on my skin and it hurts for anything to rub against it. I have heard this is nerve pain, is that probably what it is? I am also having tightening (contracted muscles near the top of the breasts near the armpits. Is that normal?
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KE1986, I also had my surgery on 12/9, but with direct-to-implant rather than TEs. Sounds like you and I are having similar symptoms along the same timeline. For about a week now, everything has been feeling raw and ultrasensitive - almost like a hairbrush with stiff bristles is being rubbed on my skin and chest wall under the implants. The tops of my breasts, and the area around and under my armpit have also been sore and achy. When I saw my plastic surgeon last week (two week post-surgery check-up), she said it was normal nerve pain and it would start to diminish gradually. Yesterday and today I was a bit less uncomfortable, clothes weren't bothering me as much, and I'm hoping this trend continues. Ibuprofen helps a bit, too.
Hope you are feeling better soon.
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my drains came out yesterday and boy was I glad to have those suckers gone. They didn’t hurt exactly, but they were extremely annoying to keep track of and I was always worried I was going g to snag one of them on something.
The bandages also came off yesterday and I got my first look at my rebuilt boobs. They are definitely a completely new shape and way perkier than they used to be. I think I will end up liking them just fine once I get used to them and the bruises and scars fade.
I am still in the awful binder for today, but I ordered one of the bras recommended in this thread and I hope it shows up today because I am sick of the binder.
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After a semi breakdown last evening, I switched from the bra the plastic surgeon put on me during surgery (I did have an extra so was washing them) to a much more comfortable post surgical bra that was given to me by my breast surgeon at an appt prior to surgery. I hope it’s okay to switch. I just couldn’t tolerate the tightness and coarseness of the other one any longer. It also zipped up in the front, so you couldn’t loosen the band around the bottom without totally unzipping it. The sensitive skin from collarbone to armpit is still there, but may be a bit better. Certainly a softer bra strap is an improvement. It sounds like this sensitivity is a common occurrence so hopefully we all get relief from it very soon!
For those with tissue expanders, what do yours feel like? Are they lumpy and bumpy? Can you feel the port where you will get fills - and if so what does it feel like? My tissue expander is lumpy and there is one area that is hard (almost center of breast between sternum and armpit and even with armpit) that is maybe 2 inches x 2 inches. I’m wondering if that is the port? Is the port that big?
Stacey, how was you doctor appt? Were they able to help you with the swelling? Hope you got your drain removal!
Ke1986, I don’t know about the contracted muscle, but the skin sensitivity seems to be a common issue. Hope it is improving for you!
Typhoon, thank you for sharing what your doctor said about theskin burning/sensitivity. Nerves sure do strange things as they heal.
Melbo, happy for you and your drain removal and that your first look was a positive one!
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Hi all - posting an update. First of all - thank you to everyone to responded!! I am sad I didn't see them before my surgery, I guess I expected to be notified of updates on the thread and will need to check into how to do that!!
Overall surgery went fine, arrived at 6AM, home by 5pm. Hated the drains but got the last two removed yesterday. I think it only took that long because of the holidays because my output levels were certainly low enough.
I ended up walking in wearing only my clothes, no jewelry - just some jammy pants, slides with fuzzy socks, and a hoodie with my drain holder pockets gifted to me via a "pay-it-forward". Tramadol for pain for roughly 3 days then switched to ibuprofen/Tylenol. I couldn't stand the fuzzy brain. No stitches - only glue.
I had a phone tree setup, so kids & husband knew who to update. Everyone was warned it would only be a text so I wouldn't have to deal with trying to be strong or thorough, etc. All that worked great! Husband was great getting me setup - maybe a little to hover-y but I'll take that over being not enough check-ins.
The downside is that all 4 of the lymph nodes they took (Sentinel) tested positive for cancer (3 with higher amounts). SO - full axially dissection coming up mid-January to check how far it spread. They said it would affect how aggressive they get on chemo/radiation. I already don't like how my armpit feels but figure it's better out than in. I just am not sure how I'll handle it if all of them test positive for cancer. I'm off to do lymph node removal research.....
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KMouse, sorry about the lymph nodes! I had 15 removed, 3 with cancer -- the armpit scar is the most annoying/painful, hopefully it will get better. Best of luck on your upcoming dissection!
I have a CAT scan and bone scan tomorrow to check for any other cancer in my body. Fingers crossed!
Hopeful, sometimes a breakdown can be a breakTHROUGH... hope that your bra is more comfortable now!
Typhoon & KE1986 I am right there with you with the burning skin sensation. Gabapentin + ibuprofen helps me with it, but only for a couple hours. Honestly with my skin sensitivity I would just walk around naked from the waist up if I could, but I don't want to scare the kids. (They'd be traumatized enough to see me walking around naked, much more with my current Frankenboob situation.)
My tissue expanders are so bulky and uncomfortable. I remember reading about that on these boards before I got them but there's really no substitute for having them in your chest. Just... weird. I was talking to a nurse at my doctor's office about my various pain and after talking for a bit she said, "look as someone who has walked in your shoes... I had a bilateral mastectomy four months ago... the tissue expanders hurt until they take them out, and then I felt fine." I appreciated her sharing her personal experience. It's a bit frustrating because I'll probably have TEs until I'm done with chemo and possibly radiation so who knows how long that will be. But hopefully there's a light at the end of the tunnel.
Is anyone else feeling a little... abandoned... by your medical team? With the holidays and everything. My BS, who I thought was wonderful, is on vacation, and of course she's entitled to vacation, but there's like two nurses working in her office and they seem totally overwhelmed. I called about some paperwork for my short-term disability that I gave to the doctor two weeks ago (rookie mistake handing it to the surgeon, I know that now) and no one knows anything about the paperwork and it's just this one poor nurse trying to deal with everything. My pain prescriptions ran out and my plastic surgeon's PA called me about refills? Which, I'm very grateful she called and she was great but just feels a bit random that she's the one handling this.
Very grateful for the support of everyone on these boards.
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@hopeful my tissue expanders were rock hard at first but I've had 3 expansions and they're starting to soften up.
Good luck Kmouse on the dissection and good luck Blue on the CT...I took a xanax before that and that was the best test out of all of them lol
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11 days out and I’m feeling so good! Down to taking ibuprofen and tramadol twice in 24 hours, due to a little soreness...which I wonder if it’s mostly my drains. It seems everyone is ahead of me on the drain front. I can’t have mine removed until I’m under 30CC on each side in 2 days. Today was the first day I was under 30CC, so hoping tomorrow is the same and I can have them removed Thursday. Otherwise, I’ll have to wait until Monday, and that is my follow-up appointment with surgeon, plastic surgeon, and pt. I have to travel 2 hours to meet with everyone...I think if my drains are at a low level tomorrow morning, I’ll put in a call to plastics to see how I go about getting someone local to remove the drains the next day if they are still at that level. Hopefully my surgeon has my pathology back when I meet with him...he said due to Covid, they are behind and it may take longer. I feel in limbo, and am ready to start making plans and getting on with life! I’ve done the chemo, I’ve had the surgery, now what?! Anyone else feel this way?
I’m quite pleased with how my expanders look, they were a little lumpy-bumpy over the scar, but seem to be smoothing nicely as they heal. I may not even have them filled. I like the size so far, a little smaller than I was. They filled with 450cc at surgery. My skin is still pretty numb. I don’t touch or feel much, I don’t really like looking at the frankenboobs...it’s just a reminder of the damn cancer. They truly are prettier than I expected. I do get strange nerve tingles.
What are others doing during the healing process? I’m blessed and not working right now, or probably the rest of the winter. Being self employed with my family ranch, I’m not really needed and it’s a slow time anyways. I felt so bad during chemo, I didn’t feel like doing anything! But now I’m feeling much better, food tastes great again...but with covid, and recovery from surgery, I shouldn’t go out and about. It’s cold where I live, so going for walks is out most days. I wonder around the house, but most cleaning and the usual things I would do, is out at least for now. My husband will carry the laundry to the couch and I can fold it... I did have a friend drop off a jigsaw puzzle to keep me busy, I have a few books I want to read...the Matthew McConaughey memoir is next, and I have a knitting block of the month club I started during chemo I need to catch up on.
Here’s hoping that everyone else’s healing process is going well! Any plans to ring in the new year?
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Side Note: I should just stay away from my patient portal, but I checked and my pathology report is there. I don’t really understand it, but it does say that the lymph node is negative for cancer...
My right breast was negative for cancer.
Left breast (Simple mastectomy):
- Residual invasive ductal carcinoma, two foci, grade 2/3, largest measuring 1.1 cm, associated with biopsy.
I’m assuming, this means there was some cancer left after chemo. But I can’t tell if my margins were clear...Or what the rest of the report means. I guess I will hold onto the positive...that my node was negative!
Now to wait to hear from surgeon, oncologist, and see if I need radiation.
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thanks Hopeful23, swelling has gone done some. Still has the numb feeling but they say that’s normal but 10 days post op drains are out! Ready for my first shower!! It’s the little things at this point!! Hope everyone is doing well. Question- for those out there with implants.. have you heard them “swoosh” weird to hear your boobs make a noise when you get up!
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Melbo, it looks like you and I are on the same path. Glad things are improving for you. You made mention of a new bra recommendation. Can you share what that is? I’m struggling to find one comfortable enough and still in the hospital bra which is so uncomfortable. Thanks in advance! Stay well!
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I ordered the Carole Martin full freedom bra from Amazon. Someone else on the thread recommended it. I got it yesterday and it’s definitely an improvement over the binder, but I ordered a second one in the next bigger band size because this one is just a wee bit snug against the incisions on my sides.
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Hello all - I'm having BMX with straight to implant reconstruction in three weeks but going down in size substantially (FF to
. Did anyone have bras in advance of your surgery and if so how did you know which size to get? 0 -
- Kimberly1981: My plastic surgeon sent me home in a bra, and gave me an extra. I found some similar on amazon and ordered a few more after surgery. It's is the Carole Martin full freedom bra. It's stretchy so will accommodate different cup sizes, you just order your band size. It's actually exactly the same as the post surgery bras I got from the hospital, with a different brand label on it. They are comfortable. I should add I’m somewhere between a B and C and the cups fit well.
I got my drains out today!!!!! Cheers to a happy new year to all of you!!!
0 - Kimberly1981: My plastic surgeon sent me home in a bra, and gave me an extra. I found some similar on amazon and ordered a few more after surgery. It's is the Carole Martin full freedom bra. It's stretchy so will accommodate different cup sizes, you just order your band size. It's actually exactly the same as the post surgery bras I got from the hospital, with a different brand label on it. They are comfortable. I should add I’m somewhere between a B and C and the cups fit well.
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kimberly1981 - I also did direct-to-implant. Prior to surgery, my plastic surgeon suggested that I check out a variety of bras. I ended up getting, and loving, the Macom Signature bra. Sizing is based on your band size, and the fabric adapts to your cup size. This is the only bra I can bear to wear right now, and it has just enough compression to provide support, without feeling like the implants are being squashed into my chest.
macom® SIGNATURE POST SURGERY BRA - RECOMMENDED BY SURGEONS
The most popular post-op bra with no underwiring for superior comfort and healing.
- Seamless design means no rubbing or snagging
- Medical-grade compression for optimal recovery
- Full coverage with fully expandable cups that will expand and mould to your new cup size
- Improve blood circulation
- The compression around the back will help to minimise swelling and stabilise implants
You only need to fit to your current 28, 30, 32, 34, 36, 38, or 40 size.
Sizes 42, 44 and 46 can be found on our Plus Size post surgery page.
Uses:
- Breast augmentation
- Breast reduction
- Breast lift
- Fat transfer to breast
- Mastectomy
- Support & for daily use
The deep back offers superior support and is ideal for use as a post surgery sports bra.
Try product on immediately upon receipt and prior to surgery.
⇒ Update:
We have removed the bows from our products therefore you no longer have to worry about those bumps that show beneath your clothes. This has not yet been reflected in the product photograph.
Please note that due to customer feedback we have changed the finish on the base of the bra to ensure patient comfort is optimised. This has not yet been reflected in the product photograph.
It is recommended to order more than one compression bra post surgery: one on, one off.
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Thank you, both - these are super helpful!!
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I had my lumpectomy and sentinel node biopsy today. 0/3 lymph nodes positive. Happy New Year's Eve!
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I am having the same procedure this coming week, how sore are you from lumpectomy? Did they say how long you would need to recover? Thanks, nervous especially with COVID
Thanks
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Ab45 - I'm feeling good, but I'm sure I still have some of the pain meds from surgery on board. They told me that my breast shouldn't be too bad, but that my armpit will probably be pretty sore for up to three weeks. My surgeon said to take two weeks off work. I actually had covid in August while on chemo and had none of the covid symptoms, but it has hit some of my friends and family hard. Just know that the hospitals are taking every precaution to prevent you from getting it.
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AB45 — It’s been almost two weeks since my lumpectomy, sentinel node biopsy, and bilateral reconstruction. The pain hasn’t been that bad at all. I took some oxy the first three days and then managed it with OTC Tylenol. Mostly I have been stiff and uncomfortable from drains and the binders they gave me, but once the drains came out and I switched to a better bra it has been much better.
At this point I get occasional weird throbbing pain that comes and goes — I’ve been told it’s nerves reconnecting — and I have some pain/discomfort if I try to stretch too far or do too much, but it usually fades quickly. I am still careful about the incisions on my sides and I take it pretty easy to make sure I don’t jostle anything too much or risk bumping/hurting my chest and sides, but it’s getting better every day and I expect by the end of next week I will mostly be back to normal.
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Melbo - Did you have to request the reconstruction or did your surgeon bring it up? I have no concept of how much tissue they took from my breast, but that breast was already a little smaller than the other and I wonder if I'll be lopsided. It seems like our treatment plan has been mostly the same so far. Have they talked to you about when you'll begin radiation and how often you'll go for it? Are you continuing Herceptin and Perjeta for the rest of the year? I'll begin having that infusion on the 12th.
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with my breast center they automatically said my choices were lumpectomy with reconstruction or mastectomy — the oncology surgeons and plastic surgeons work closely together and it seems to be their default. The plastic surgeon also explained that it was more advantageous to do the surgery that way since the oncology surgeon would be able to see more of the breast tissue, thus giving a much better chance of getting clean margins, and they would be able to send any tissue from my non cancerous breast to pathology to make sure there was no cancer in that breast.
I am not sure when I will start radiation exactly, but I know it will be a few weeks after surgery to give my incisions a chance to heal. I also don’t know the exact radiation plan, but standard treatment is 5x a week for 6 weeks, although some radiation oncologists seem to be experimenting with fewer sessions.
I will also be on Herceptin and Perjeta until around August (which is year after I started chemo + Herceptin and Perjeta.) everything I’ve seen says that standard treatment for HER2+ cancer is a year of Herceptin with some doctorsincluding Perjeta and some not.
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5 times a week for 6 weeks for radiation! My breast cancer clinic is about 1 1/2 hours away. Fingers crossed maybe I can do that at my local hospital.
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hopefully you can do radiation closer because everything I’ve read about it implies it’s a really fast treatment once you get started. Most women in the radiation groups say it takes longer to get dressed and undressed than it does to get the actual radiation treatment.
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arb95f...I had a lumpectomy with the reduction. I had a large tumor but did have a pCR. But because I had large breasts DD my breast surgeon recommended the reduction. I could not be happier with the results. I won't go into detail here but feel free to PM if you have any questions. It was an easy surgery. I am 4 1/2 weeks out and feel great! Best wishes!
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I didn't get a good result with my lat flap. Not sure how much of that was the surgeon. It's hard to form a round shape from a back muscle. Also I have back and shoulder problems now that started about 10 years later. Wish I had my back muscle back again.
2005 Invasive DCIS, Right Stage 0, Grade 3, +++ Mast with lat flap, AC/TH2020 1.8cm tumor, Left Grade 2, ER+PR+Her2- Dec28 Mast with implant only
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