Surgery on tuesday.
Vallerina
Member Posts: 183 ✭
Hi . Im having my air expander out and a single silicon implant put in on right side next tuesday 4th july. Not as scarey as the first mx surgery at the end of march but im still pretty nervous. I feel like i just almost got back to my old self and now im going back to recovery mode. My biggest fear back then was that my beautiful breast would be gone and the post op biopsy would show the whole thing was a mistake. Well it wasnt a mistake. 7cm of dcis, mastectomy was never a choice it was a necessity. Im so grateful the cancer is all gone and no further treatment was needed. In fact it feels like a bit of a miracle. My Sister works in an ngo and 300 nuns were praying for me. We arent catholic but it seems like it paid off. Now im hoping ps can do a good match between well preserved 53 year old dd cup boob on the left and brand new silicon boob on the right. i was originally told c cup was biggest they can do in implants, but now he is saying he thinks he can do a good match. . He said he will try to make a nipple if he has enough tissue but im not sure wjat he meant by that. Im still a bit worried about the other side as i am still not fully through menopause and i wasnt prescribed any tamoxifen not sure why but will b asking next time i see bs. Of course i am grateful my little Journey has been very short and im looking at being back to most NORMAL activities by summer. If anything will ever be normal again which i doubt. Referring to a recent discussion on here. I had 7 cm dcis that was the longest side and it wasnt linear it was a huge mass. It could not be felt at all, there was no lump, it was not visible on mammo or ultrasound. It was only seen on mri which my brother in law recommended b4 schedluded lumpectomy that never ended up happening as mastectomy was needed instead . He is a doctor and had just had a patient with similar and reccomended mri just as a precaution. Dcis was only picked up on mammo as 2 tiny areas of calcification which they also only tested as a precaution. I am slim , healthy, strong fit, almost a hippy in my avoidance of household chemicals, electromagnetic radiation, wifi etc i havent taken drugs of any type for 30 years , never smoked. Cant say i dont drink but hav cut down massively this year and feel great. Thanks to those that have replied to my previous posts, i dont have constant data availabl so often cant stay connected but appreciate ur responses. Also entire threads seem to b unavailabl if i use my phone instead of laptop. ?? Should have wifi in rbwh next week tho. Cheers vallerina
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The best of luck Valerina. I will be having a mastectomy soon also and very nervous. Tell us how it goes when you can.0
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The changeover is a much smaller process. I didn't have my nipple created then but heading back to discuss that next month. I've got a DD cup bra I wear...I'm not spilling out the top like I did when I was an E cup...so I'm probably a D but due to shape I need a DD cup which I completely fill out just no upper boob popping up there as you don't have to lift them up. Hope all goes well.
Not all dcis is treated with tamoxifen. A question to pose to your breast surgeon. I guess if no breast tissue it's not necessary.. Kath.0 -
@Vallerina, I was a C cup and had the surgeon measure me up before my mastectomy for my implant. On day of surgery she said "Oh Cath, I'm so sorry but you're going up a size - I measured you wrong" - didn't have a problem with it and I now take a D cup. All good. How excellent that you had 300 nuns on your side too!!! - I'm a lapsed Catholic and would still say go for it if anyone was going to pray for me and a good outcome! Excellent. All the best lovely, hope your matched up beautifully. Xx Cath
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HI thanks for the good wishes.
Paula, The ps did ask me if I wanted a reshape of the intact boob to match at the same time and I was keen. But when he explained the risks could be loss of sensation, meaning I could have 2 numb nipples, extra scarring and a small risk of total nipple necrosis of the only nipple I have left, I decided that it wasnt worth it. He is a wonderful surgeon and the risks are slight but there is the old adage if its not broken dont fix it, so for now Im going with that. As my cancer was so sneaky and invisible Im also worried about creating unnecessary scar tissue where cancer cells could lurk undetected. No one has measured me or taken any pictures or really discussed anything much. I have had a feeling all along I just have to trust in the process and so far its gone well.
Kath, good to know they were able to create a DD I dont expect an exact match but would be good if they are the same size. My expander was 600 cc. Anyway time to pack. Ive been a bit teary. The expander was temporary so hating it was ok because I knew it was temporary. But this one Im going to be stuck with for a long time. Im glad to be cancer free of course, but still wish none of this ever happened.
Cheers Vallerina0 -
Hi @Vallerina, sending you love and hoping the surgery went well. Paula xxx0
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Thank you paula that is nice. It went well and i feel good. I am disappointed tho. somehow i hoped i would wake up with a breast that matched the other side. Like having my old breast back. After all they can make men into gorgeus women theses days and do so many amazing things. The size is good and implant looks ok in my bra which is good. It is softer and more natural than the expander and im sure the surgeon has done a nice job. But its still much roundercl and higher fom. I know it still has to settle The mastectomy scar was sort of under0
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Bah that just posted on its own. I was saying the scar was on the lower side of the expander but now its sort of right across front and centre. It had healed really nicely so he didnt disturb it and i now have a second incision down on my rib line you probably wont see. I am being pedantic and ungrateful i was always told it was going to be difficult without an adjustment on the other side. It breaks my heart to have to have my natural breast that i love operated on but may be necessary. I guess ill just hav to give it time and go through the process like all you other inspirational ladies. Maybe a good sleep will help. And a nipple is somewhere down the track that will help too. Thanks for caring i really appreciate it. My fiancee reckons its great so thats a bonus. Xx1
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Vallerina, glad it went well. I don't think your being pedantic at all, our breasts are out femininity and I've yet to go through my mastectomy, and I'm trying to imagine already how bad it will look especially as I can't have reconstruction for at least two years. It's all a process we have to learn to adjust to. None of it is easy.0
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Hi Vallerina Pleased that surgrry went well for you Seeing such diverse roads and varied outcomes expressed on this site by such courageous and genuine women is inspiring Hoping your new phase of recovery and claiming your new normal is steady and complication free take care and hugs to you0
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Hi Vallerina, So glad for you that the exchange went well. My implant sat fairly high and gave a mound effect at the top of my foob and then about 10 months in softened and dropped (not much but lost the mound effect for a far more natural look) so much so that my surgeon suggested I have the dermal sling lowered and fat grafting and leave my natural side alone - sounds good in theory but I realise my natural is going to sag and then I'll have one perky and one saggy sock!!! So opting for reduction on my natural and fat grafting instead. Are you using bio oil or something similar to it twice a day to help reduce the scarring?0
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Hi thanks ladies. I have used rosehip oil on the skin of whole breast during expanding process to help skin stretch. The doctors told me the tape is the best thing to help the scar heal. So i had tape on for 2&1/2 months. Once i get nipple and tatoo aerola most of the front scar will be covered. Apparently i got a new kind of implant that has a variable shape that changes when you stand up . Socoda interesting to know it took 10 months for the settling process. And that they are still working with you to help you feel confident. Bit early to tell for me i hav always been fairly impatient . Ha I will go home now and probably examine it for hours from every angle. Lol. It looks even in the bra im much happier today. :-) its all a big adjustment 6 months ago i was happily oblivious all this was ahead. So i guess there is even a silver lining there . 6 months and already reconstructed and looking at moving on. I do feel lucky and better every day & my grandchild is due next week. Big picture.... life is good. Xx1
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I did have quite a lot of upper swelling that settled a couple of weeks after surgery. No...they don't look anything like my original breasts. Am I entirely happy? No. ...as they aren't my original breasts. But a few months on I am more accepting and hope the nipple creation will help me to think of them as my breasts. I know for me this was the point that I finally accepted my loss. Prior this I was just on the roller coaster. Kath x1
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Thanks kath.we can all only go forward with what we have..it sux
I think if the feeling returns to the skin it might also help the new breast to feel more real.have u any feeling in ur skin and if so how long till it returned? i hope u dont mind me asking. My implant already feels much more comfortable than the expander . Are you having nipple creation soon.?? I guess then its another wait for healing before tatooing if you want it. I hope it goes well and helps with the moving on process.. xx
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I have very light touch sensation nothing more. So with gentle like touch...like tickling it feels lovely, but nothing more. We've adapted our love making, not easy, but it feels normal now. Having appointment later this month regarding nipple creation. I lost both breasts and nipples . Kath x
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