Reconstruction

Hi   Nice to meet you I have to say I totally agree with you that it is a process... my story/process so far is on my profile if you click on my name... it’s a bit long I’m afraid, I can’t do succinct!  I’m back to see the consultant tomorrow to see if the margins are clear or whether I will need a mastectomy... which wasn’t what we were expecting initially... like you say... it’s a process & if it’s necessary then that’s what will happen next. You sound as though your outlook has been very much like mine... from the beginning I’ve focussed on saying: it is what it is, I can’t change it, so... one day at a time... 

Look forward to keeping up with how you’re doing 

Nanny Dooie and

I agree wholeheartedly with everything you have said. I’m 50 and just grateful to be alive. I’ve had a mastectomy and immediate implant reconstruction and then had the same breast opened up again a month later to attempt to take out the dermal sling (a piece of skin used to support the implant).

So because of the extra surgery and then the radiotherapy I’ve actually been off work for nearly 5 months. My body isn’t perfect and I still don’t have a nipple or areole tattoo etc. Not sure if I’m going to get those. But in a bra my body looks “normal” and that will do for me.  

My implant has survived 15 sessions of radiotherapy. I suppose it’s not perfect and I’ve not seen the consultant since treatment ended, however I’m still very happy with it compared to the alternative. I think there is a small crease on the side of my cleavage but it doesn’t bother me at all. My boob is actually still blue from sentinel node biopsy and that was 5 months ago and I have no nipple. I didn’t want to have any other parts of my body cut up although I fully understand that a diep will give a more natural finish.

Your original thread was because your plastic surgeon is stating he won’t do an implant due to radiotherapy. If that’s what you really want then seek another opinion.

Hi everyone!

Oh my goodness. I didn't get a reply after a few days so didn't check back. Thought I'd have a quick look to see if I could get any info and here you all are! Wonder why I didn't get an email alert

Thank you so much for bumping the post up. It seems a few of you have received help too which is wonderful.

I've just had a very quick read through and can already see my concern about time frames has been answered. But I also see I've probably got a bit to think about. I'll have a proper read and will probably have more questions.

Thank you!!!!

Love and hugs

ive seen consultant today. Boob is great. Give me a shout if you need anything.

Hi Drivermason

Good to hear the boob is all good

So firstly what exactly is DIEP? Is that what I explained. Taking skin/fat from the tummy area...?

I'm in no rush. But once the surgery appointment comes through can you rearrange it? Like if the timing is terrible. My main concern is my daughter. I will get help but it will have to be planned as best as I can. 

I still suffer with sensitivity, pain and occasional severe shooting pains. Mostly from radio I think. So if I did go ahead once recovered from the obvious pain of surgery will that go away? Or will I just have the similar issues because of surgery?

Probably a silly question but do they take away the radio damaged cells. Or would they put the implant/new fat on top of what's there.

I ask because in my mind I believe it's the zapped fat/cells that are painful.

Sorry for my lack of technical terms. Like I said in my original post I never knew that surgery was even an option for me. I thought it was only for extreme cases and threw myself to the bottom of the pile. Not in a negative sense. Just in a get on with it sense. That's just me. To be honest I think if they had mentioned surgery I wouldn't have been ready until now anyway.

What about the tummy area. What happens there? I had a cesarean 5 years ago. I'm a big girl on a mission to get healthy. Lol. So not overly concerned. Do they take a lot of fat. Is it noticeable?

Is there anything I'm missing that I should be asking? 

  xx

Hello again Drivermason, can I ask why you had the dermal sling removed & if that’s the case what now holds/supports the implant?!

Just bumping up ️

Hi

Thank you re my boob. It’s probably not perfect but it looks real (minus the nipple of course) and at 50 years old I don’t go topless anywhere lol!

Yes a diep is where they take the fat from somewhere else. Or they can also use a muscle in your back but that often needs an implant to fill it out too.

Re the surgery dates,  I would imagine you can say that a date isn’t convenient but that would just delay things. My plastic surgeon was brilliant and he would tell me the dates he was proposing while I was there in front of him. Having cancer I’ve knocked a few people off his operating list as cancer patients come first. I’m seeing on 09/03 and I’ll need to decide if I want to have further surgery to create a nipple. I haven’t decided yet.

I don’t know the answers to some of your questions as I had my implant put in at the same time as the mastectomy and then had radiotherapy after that. If you’ve already had a mastectomy then I think they’ll need to stretch the skin with a balloon type implant that you inject saline into every 2 weeks until it reaches the desired size, and then you have the permanent implant put in.

If you’ve had a mastectomy I don’t think the’ll remove anymore tissue but I’m not sure.

I found both my surgeries relatively easy to recover from and didn’t need to have drains for my 2nd operation.

As far as I am aware, a diep or Dorsi muscle reconstruction is more natural and of course will change with your body I.e. if you put on weight then so will your boob. With an implant it just stays the same shape regardless. 

The reason I didn’t have the diep was just because I didn’t want such a lengthy operation and recovery time. I’m really happy with my implant. From what I’ve seen and read on here people tend to have more problems with the wound where the fat was taken from than the actual boob itself.

I hope the above his helpful.

Hi Nanny Dooie

After the mastectomy the tissue is sent for analysis. It was at that point they decided the margins weren’t clear enough even though the whole breast had been removed.

Not every surgeon uses a dermal sling (which is basically the skin from the bottom half of my breast) but mine did and that was the area where the margins weren’t clear enough. A mesh is also used to encase the implant.

It was 4 weeks later by the time I had my 2nd surgery and when they opened me up the surgeon couldn’t get the dermal sling out anyway as it had fused with the rest of the tissue. So I still have the dermal sling bu5 that’s why I needed radiotherapy just for a belt and braces approach.

Hope this makes sense?

Drivermason that does make sense however I wasn’t aware they could/would use your own skin as the dermal sling! Mine has said he will use mesh. Makes sense about the radiotherapy as well. I’ve been told we won’t  know until after it’s been removed & tested as to whether I will need radiotherapy on that side. Previously when he did the lumpectomy I was definitely going to have to have radiotherapy because that side was invasive; however what has meant that I’ve now got to have a mastectomy is that in the margins of the invasive lump is low grade DCIS as well! The other side is also in debate as to radiotherapy or not atm as that was DCIS but intermediate & high grade. He’s referred me to oncology to discuss everything & decide if I need it.
Still waiting for a surgery date