Tomorrow marks the middle of this second last Docetaxel round. Only one to go. I've been through probably the worst week and a half of all the chemo rounds so. Severe bone pain and muscle weakness to the point of not being able to stand for more than a few minutes. I fainted twice through the pain. The positive thing is I only have one round to go (did I mention that?). I now have to think about my mastectomy. My surgeon has strongly recommended that I have the left breast removed as I have DCIS still left in the breast. My dilemma is 'do I have both breasts off or just the left'? One minute I've decided to have them both removed, then I decide that one is enough to go through. I'm told that precancerous cells are hard to detect so what if I have DCIS in the right breast too? This is awful! I can't decide. Have any of you had the same dilemma? How have you handled this? I don't want to get this b........ back and have to go through chemo ever again.

This us such a biggie.....Have you had an MRI? This test can detect high DCIS and could give you the best idea of whats in the other breast. Recovery wise it would be much the same I think having both removed or just one. If you remove just the one, will you be able to move on and put cancer behind you, or will you worry about cancer returning in the remaining breast? If you're considering reconstruction, some procedures can only be performed once, eg tram/diep flap can be done just once so if you do this for just one and then need to later remove and reconstruct the other, you will need to have an implant. So your new breasts will feel different to each other. But if you go for implants this wouldn't be an issue. Good luck with your decision, you must find whats right for you and a future that's not filled with regret and worry. I'm sure lots of women will respond to help you with a variety of stories and opinions. For what it's worth, having a mastectomy was not a bad as I imagined. Amazing what we can deal with. Much love and hugs xxxx Louie

Of course. I hadn't considered the fact that the DIEP procedure could only be done the once. I definitely don't want to have implants. I would rather have naturally tissue of my own used. Oh well, I guess I'll have to do a lot more thinking. I still have plenty of time to decide though, I think the op wouldn't be until the end of August or early September. I haven't even seen the plastic surgeon yet! Perhaps I should just calm down a bit now and concentrate on the last round of chemo. Oh I'll be so relieved when that's finished although I'll still have to visit the hospital every three weeks for another nine months of Herceptin. Well we do what we have to do don't we. I know you have more surgery to go so do let me know how you get on. Love and thanks again from Jane xxx

Thank you so much Mandy. I am very grateful for this site which gives me insights from other pink ladies like you. I value your words of wisdom. I'm looking forward to saying goodbye to chemo and then I'll settle down to decision making. Much love to you xx

Well, that si what I thought up just now haha. Thanks for your thanks, Jane, this site is worth its weight in gold, a safe place to "vent". Chin up, Mandy

Do I or don't I? | BCNA Online Network

11 Replies

LouiseTurner
In Memoriam
13 years ago
This us such a biggie.....Have you had an MRI? This test can detect high DCIS and could give you the best idea of whats in the other breast. Recovery wise it would be much the same I think having both removed or just one. If you remove just the one, will you be able to move on and put cancer behind you, or will you worry about cancer returning in the remaining breast? If you're considering reconstruction, some procedures can only be performed once, eg tram/diep flap can be done just once so if you do this for just one and then need to later remove and reconstruct the other, you will need to have an implant. So your new breasts will feel different to each other. But if you go for implants this wouldn't be an issue. Good luck with your decision, you must find whats right for you and a future that's not filled with regret and worry. I'm sure lots of women will respond to help you with a variety of stories and opinions. For what it's worth, having a mastectomy was not a bad as I imagined. Amazing what we can deal with. Much love and hugs xxxx Louie
LouiseTurner
In Memoriam
13 years ago
This us such a biggie.....Have you had an MRI? This test can detect high DCIS and could give you the best idea of whats in the other breast. Recovery wise it would be much the same I think having both removed or just one. If you remove just the one, will you be able to move on and put cancer behind you, or will you worry about cancer returning in the remaining breast? If you're considering reconstruction, some procedures can only be performed once, eg tram/diep flap can be done just once so if you do this for just one and then need to later remove and reconstruct the other, you will need to have an implant. So your new breasts will feel different to each other. But if you go for implants this wouldn't be an issue. Good luck with your decision, you must find whats right for you and a future that's not filled with regret and worry. I'm sure lots of women will respond to help you with a variety of stories and opinions. For what it's worth, having a mastectomy was not a bad as I imagined. Amazing what we can deal with. Much love and hugs xxxx Louie

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