Changing life
It has really been a challenging 2 months for me and my life is changing so fast. I am 47 and was diagnosed with a 1 cm DCIS, end of October. Had a lumpectomy and a re-excision in November, No micr...
Forum Discussion
I'm 53 and had a recurrence last year. I was 43 when I was first diagnosed. I haven't had gene testing but two of my maternal aunts died of BC in their late 40s.
Ten years ago getting a bi-lat mx proved a bit of a challenge. I had lobular BC in one breast which had taken ages to diagnose and given my family history I decided those boobs had to go. I was busy and didn't want to go through the whole shitfight twice.
Living in regional VIC really complicated things. The surgeons up here were happy to lop a tit off but they would not do both at once and there are no options for reconstruction. I ended up in Melbourne where I had to interview three more surgeons before I found one that would do what I wanted.
I'd decided on implant reconstructions which were distinctly unfashionable at the time. One surgeon would only do tram flap retreads which sounded just ghastly. I needed my stomach muscles. Another would use tissue from my back but would only do one at the time and was fretting because I wasn't fat enough to form a substantial reco. In the end a surgeon at Peter Mac agreed to do what I wanted. By that time I had finished chemo, so off they came.
In hindsight I wish I'd just gone for flat and fabulous. The implants and I have not got on, but there really was no way of predicting that at the time.
When my cancer came back last year it turned up in my armpit. Really? Who gets cancer in their armpit? Anyway, more surgery, another poisoning, rads then hormone therapy. I decided in the middle of all this to get rid of my ovaries as well. I was perimenopausal so thought 'What the hell?,' I'm happy with my choice but that last step into menopause was a doozy. Realistically it would have happened anyway, but I'm not overly pleased with some of the old lady things that are suddenly part of my life.
Yes cancer changes your life, but you sound like a pragmatic person who is making tough choices based on the evidence you have. Good on you @MaryAnnie. And good luck for the future. Marg xxx
Ten years ago getting a bi-lat mx proved a bit of a challenge. I had lobular BC in one breast which had taken ages to diagnose and given my family history I decided those boobs had to go. I was busy and didn't want to go through the whole shitfight twice.
Living in regional VIC really complicated things. The surgeons up here were happy to lop a tit off but they would not do both at once and there are no options for reconstruction. I ended up in Melbourne where I had to interview three more surgeons before I found one that would do what I wanted.
I'd decided on implant reconstructions which were distinctly unfashionable at the time. One surgeon would only do tram flap retreads which sounded just ghastly. I needed my stomach muscles. Another would use tissue from my back but would only do one at the time and was fretting because I wasn't fat enough to form a substantial reco. In the end a surgeon at Peter Mac agreed to do what I wanted. By that time I had finished chemo, so off they came.
In hindsight I wish I'd just gone for flat and fabulous. The implants and I have not got on, but there really was no way of predicting that at the time.
When my cancer came back last year it turned up in my armpit. Really? Who gets cancer in their armpit? Anyway, more surgery, another poisoning, rads then hormone therapy. I decided in the middle of all this to get rid of my ovaries as well. I was perimenopausal so thought 'What the hell?,' I'm happy with my choice but that last step into menopause was a doozy. Realistically it would have happened anyway, but I'm not overly pleased with some of the old lady things that are suddenly part of my life.
Yes cancer changes your life, but you sound like a pragmatic person who is making tough choices based on the evidence you have. Good on you @MaryAnnie. And good luck for the future. Marg xxx