Good morning,
I am waiting for a mastectomy and have been told I cannot have reconstruction at this point, so I asked my breast care nurse about prothesis, she said I will get given a softie for leaving hospital and then in 6 weeks will be visited by companies in mafgies where I can purchase a proper one. She said I cannot get any on the NHS and they all have to be paid for by me. When I looked at the companies that come to visit, they are £200+. How unfair is this, it is not as if we chose to have cancer and now we have to pay. Does anyone have any experience of this. I live in Wales and part of swansea Bay health board. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.
Hi SH18 and a very warm welcome to the Community but sorry to hear about your diagnoses.
Navigating the cancer journey can be such a stressful and challenging time but getting support from people who have walked the ‘exact same' cancer journey can help a lot. (I have a completely different cancer).
This New to Community area is like our reception desk where we look to try and direct you to the best part of the Community for you to get support. The Community is actually divided into dedicated Support Groups (Discussion Rooms)….. but I do see that you have already joined our dedicated Breast Cancer support group. This will be a safe place to talk to others with a similar diagnosis, treatment experience, to ask questions and get support.
To connect in with the group please click on the link below……..
…… then once the group page opens you can introduce yourself by putting up your very own post by clicking [+ Create new post] or [ + ] in the top right of the group page.
You can copy and paste the text from this post into your new post.
You may find it helpful to call the Macmillan Support Line open 8am-8pm (timings may differ across services) 7 days a week on 0808 808 00 00. This service provides cancer information, practical information, emotional support, benefits/financial guidance or just a listening ear. We also have our Ask an Expert section but do allow 3 working days for a reply.
Talking to people face to face can be very helpful so do check to see if you have any Local Macmillan Support in your area, do also check for a local Maggie's Centre as these folks are amazing and give support to all the family.
Do get back to me if you need further help navigating the community.
