Just Diagnosed

rhoanch
rhoanch Member Posts: 5
edited October 2016 in Newly diagnosed

I have just been diagnosed and have seen my surgeon. I have been referred to a plastics surgeon and I am currently weighing up whether to go down the reco path using trans flap from the tummy.  Based on the research it looks like a major op with considerable rehab time. I am a very active person and I wonder whether the mastectomy would be enough to cope with let alone the reco.

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  • rowdy
    rowdy Member Posts: 1,165 ✭
    edited March 2015

    Hi I have just had mastectomy and trans flap on the 19/8/14. Yes it is a long progress and I have been home from hospital since Monday. I left hospital with no drains even after a bit of a hiccup. I think this is one of the hardest decisions I had to make, but at the moment Im sure I have made the right one. My plastic surgeon was great, it is still hard to know what the finished boob will look like ,but it is funny looking at 1 saggy and 1 perky.

    Ask your surgeon every question you have even if you think it is dumb, write a list for when you go in.

    Good luck nodecision is bad think about what you really want, its your body. Take carex

     

  • Merlins mum
    Merlins mum Member Posts: 443 ✭
    edited March 2015
    I went down the implant route because I didn't have enough tummy and didn't want to use the back muscle. My age and the fact that I am also very active, influenced my decision. Tram flat results look and feel more natural but are numb. Implant from skin sparing is also supposed to be numb but I have quite a lot of feeling in the skin. Bonus!
    As Rowdy says, Such an individual choice. Yes the trams flap recovery is slower but it depends on what final outcome you are looking for. I just wanted another boob that passed when naked and looks good with clothes. That's what I got.
    Ask lots. Look at all the photo stories. Talk to the surgeons. Good luck
    Juliexx
  • rhoanch
    rhoanch Member Posts: 5
    edited March 2015
    Thank you xx
  • rhoanch
    rhoanch Member Posts: 5
    edited March 2015
    Thank you xx
  • LilyFeb61
    LilyFeb61 Member Posts: 19 ✭
    edited March 2015

    Hi, I have left the whole question of reconstruction until I finish the full year of treatment, partly so I can finish one thing before I start the next, and partly so I can be confident that I want that part of my anatomy to be chopped around and changed just when I most want to be sure there are no local recurrences springing up.

    I have heard a lot of people who end up having radiotherapy treatment after a reconstruction that couldn't work well with radiotherapy-burnt skin has been started at the time of their mastectomy saying they  wished they had known they were likely to have these problems before making the choice. Some said they had to have their recon reversed because of the problems radiation had caused.

    I have also met women who found after a left mastectomy during which their expanders were implanted that they needed herceptin treatment, and then the expanders got in the way of the MUGA heart check so they had delays in treatment until correct readings could be obtained.

    So I just want to add that I have been told that it can be done later, and that you don't have to rush into a decision immediately if you are not sure.

     

     

  • rhoanch
    rhoanch Member Posts: 5
    edited March 2015

    I really appreciate everyone's perspective and this excellent forum for sharing vital information

  • AngelaSF
    AngelaSF Member Posts: 9 ✭
    edited March 2015
    I was diagnosed 11months ago and made the decision to have a mastectomy and delay reconstruction until later so I could decrease recovery time and risk of complications in order to start chemo ASAP. I started chemo 3 weeks later and also had radiation . Since I have always known I will have a recon this has helped me enormously psychologically with the body change. I feel the loss of nipple well worth the benefits gained..
    Today am recovering from ovary removal and next step is recon which will be tram. I am working on my fitness and diet so when I have the recon I am physically and mentally fit to recover as well as possible.

    My heart goes out to you at this time. Accept the love that is out there and know you will get through this one day at a time.

    A big hug to you and take care of yourself first . Angela

  • rhoanch
    rhoanch Member Posts: 5
    edited March 2015
    Thanks, gathering more information and trying to gain a broad perspective at present is so important. That feeling of not identifying with this predicament at any level at the moment is making this decision a wee bit more difficult.
    We were organised to leave for the UK on the 28/8 for 5 years, all our belongings are now in storage in the UK and my daughter's new school is sending work over and I am home schooling for the next couple of months. We still plan to travel to the UK, I am hoping at the start of Dec.
    Juggling many balls as all of us do during this time can distract but also increase the anxiety. Sharing on this forum, warm hugs, lots of cuppas, walking the dogs and sending love back to this forum will hopefully give me the perspective I require

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