Preventative mastectomy decision - young mum
Hello, Are there any young mums out there, without BRCA, who have chosen to have a preventative mastectomy of the other side at the time of reconstruction? I am a young 34yo mum who was diagnose...
Forum Discussion
Hi @SimB. I have had a preventative double mastectomy. Click on my name to read my back story. Big boobs and unfeelable tumour here too!
I'm not a young mum like you, but I am a mum to 19, 15, 13 and 10yos, the latter being my sister's kids.
With the family history and my responsibilities a double mastectomy was on the cards from the beginning, something my breast surgeon was sensitive to from our very first meeting (diagnosis).
Without the family history I was a lumpectomy and radiation patient, but the oncologist felt it was worth going the extra mile so I did an oncotype test to see if chemo would be curative, which came back positive. So I had a lot of thinking time in the intervening time, and after a great deal of thought and debate and discussion, I went ahead and did it.
No lymphodema as no nodes removed other than one in my Sentinel Node Biopsy in the first operation to remove the tumour and check if the cancer had moved.
In the earlier second operation (a re-excision) for margins, they found 4cm of previously undetected high grade DCIS, and after the BMX, more was found. That right there felt good, adding another justification to my decision. There was nothing in my other breast, but my stat for getting BC again was at the 25 - 27% mark, one in four. No regrets.
Subsequently I've tested positive to the CHEK2 gene mutation, which my BS said this week, pushed me close to the BRCA zone for likelihood of BC. So more hindsight justification, of the highest order.
Absolutely no regrets here @SimB. Lots of sadness, and my goodness I miss my boobs, but the relief that I feel at knowing I've reduced my chances of getting it as much as I can, is profound. I will never have a mammogram again, a bittersweet freedom, but a freedom nonetheless.
I went straight to reconstruction, I didn't want to wake up flat, and used my belly in a DIEP. So my foobs are warm and part of me, though with no feeling past about a third of the way up.
You might like to contact Reclaim Your Curves to see if they have someone you can talk to who's in a similar position to you. This link could help.
https://www.reclaimyourcurves.org.au/connect.html
I'm not advocating that you should do it, or shouldn't. It's just about the most personal decision you'll ever have to make. There's no right or wrong; you 'just' have to make the right decision for you. Keep asking questions. If you'd like to chat offline, PM me here and we can connect. You can ask me anything, I'm an open book! All the very best, and a big hug darl. K xox
I'm not a young mum like you, but I am a mum to 19, 15, 13 and 10yos, the latter being my sister's kids.
With the family history and my responsibilities a double mastectomy was on the cards from the beginning, something my breast surgeon was sensitive to from our very first meeting (diagnosis).
Without the family history I was a lumpectomy and radiation patient, but the oncologist felt it was worth going the extra mile so I did an oncotype test to see if chemo would be curative, which came back positive. So I had a lot of thinking time in the intervening time, and after a great deal of thought and debate and discussion, I went ahead and did it.
No lymphodema as no nodes removed other than one in my Sentinel Node Biopsy in the first operation to remove the tumour and check if the cancer had moved.
In the earlier second operation (a re-excision) for margins, they found 4cm of previously undetected high grade DCIS, and after the BMX, more was found. That right there felt good, adding another justification to my decision. There was nothing in my other breast, but my stat for getting BC again was at the 25 - 27% mark, one in four. No regrets.
Subsequently I've tested positive to the CHEK2 gene mutation, which my BS said this week, pushed me close to the BRCA zone for likelihood of BC. So more hindsight justification, of the highest order.
Absolutely no regrets here @SimB. Lots of sadness, and my goodness I miss my boobs, but the relief that I feel at knowing I've reduced my chances of getting it as much as I can, is profound. I will never have a mammogram again, a bittersweet freedom, but a freedom nonetheless.
I went straight to reconstruction, I didn't want to wake up flat, and used my belly in a DIEP. So my foobs are warm and part of me, though with no feeling past about a third of the way up.
You might like to contact Reclaim Your Curves to see if they have someone you can talk to who's in a similar position to you. This link could help.
https://www.reclaimyourcurves.org.au/connect.html
I'm not advocating that you should do it, or shouldn't. It's just about the most personal decision you'll ever have to make. There's no right or wrong; you 'just' have to make the right decision for you. Keep asking questions. If you'd like to chat offline, PM me here and we can connect. You can ask me anything, I'm an open book! All the very best, and a big hug darl. K xox