Uncertainty

Thank you @PV123 for your support and positive vibes. The drains sound like an interesting complexity - thanks for that insight.  I have to have the radiation after double mastectomy so if I decide to pursue reconstruction that would need to wait for another 6-12months. Not sure what I will do yet. Will check out that group too.
Cheers again ❤️

Hi @Mags44
Sorry to hear that you have to go through another surgery, are you having reconstruction at the same time.
I found the mastectomy surgery itself quite straightforward, the drains were a bit of a pain.  I had one drain removed on day 4 and went home with the other drain that was removed later.  I did not have reconstruction maybe because I had never been particularly fond of my boobs, I was pretty small chested to start with.  I am also much older than you with adult children.  

Hello again,

The uncertainty continues, I had my partial mastectomy and sentinel lymph node dissection, and the pathology report came back and there is a bed of 5cm cancer cells in my left breast and one out of three lymph nodes has 2.2mm cancer. So there you go. I chose partial in the end because I agreed with my surgeon that I was still collecting data, and with full mastectomy next Thursday, I am still collecting data but I feel a little more nervous now. I had the 6 months of chemo which reduced the first tumour  but obviously it was not completely effective.   Nerves nerves nerves.....@pv123 

@cazi I hope your surgery went well. 

Hi! @Mags44

Here's a couple of links that may help in your research if you haven't seen these already

https://www.bcna.org.au/understanding-breast-cancer/treatment/surgery/

https://www.bcna.org.au/understanding-breast-cancer/treatment/breast-reconstruction/

https://www.reclaimyourcurves.org.au/

The whole process is quite daunting however reading reputable sites as shown above will give you some better understanding as you go into appointments and suggested treatments and or surgeries are discussed

Best wishes
Take care

Thank you both, @Caz1 and @iserbrown for you advice and information. 

Hi! @Mags44

Here's a couple of links that may help in your research if you haven't seen these already

https://www.bcna.org.au/understanding-breast-cancer/treatment/surgery/

https://www.bcna.org.au/understanding-breast-cancer/treatment/breast-reconstruction/

https://www.reclaimyourcurves.org.au/

The whole process is quite daunting however reading reputable sites as shown above will give you some better understanding as you go into appointments and suggested treatments and or surgeries are discussed

Best wishes
Take care

Hi @Mags44 , my surgery is next week too. I’ve just had my recon cancelled but am going ahead with mastectomy. I’m ok with this, don’t want to be in hospital for too long at the moment.
Like you , I had a choice of lumpectomy or mastectomy after neo adjuvant chemo. It was a tough time deciding between the two, I spoke to several doctors and read as much as I could about it, including reading many stories on here. Eventually I went with mastectomy. My gut instincts  feel
 right with this. 
I have had radiation too, before recon, as apparently it’s not ideal to irradiate after recon.
There are so many factors to take in. I feel your pain. It did my head in , and all I wanted to do was read a good book and stop having to make decisions!!!
Also I think it’s normal to be feeling extra jittery at the moment. I certainly am. :/
Cazx 

Thank you @PV123 for your very kind support. For the partial mastectomy, the radiation is meant to follow. I am glad you raised that as I was not aware of that re impact on mastectomy later. I have a conversation planned with my surgeon tomorrow to assist me clarify my remaining concerns and I will ask him about that too. 

i am also very sorry to hear about your mother too, it’s not easy is it. 

Hi @Mags44

I am glad to be of any assistance, this journey is complicated and we are expected to make so many important decisions.  I would also like to point out that I did not have radiation as both the oncologist and the surgeon indicated that mastectomy healing and reconstruction becomes more difficult after radiation. I was advised to choose between radiation and mastectomy.  Have you already had radiation or will you be having that after the surgery.

Sorry to hear about your father, just adds another stress element.  I lost my mother to cancer a few years back as well.

All the best with your surgery, feel free to ask me any further questions.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience @PV123 . I feel like I am moving along a similar path and had similar medical team advice. I feel more uncertain as the surgery gets closer. My friend suggested to me perhaps I should get the partial first and if I still feel I need to, see if I can pursue the full mastectomy later. I can’t think of a time I have been more indecisive.