Optional double mastectomy over single. What helped you to decide?

I had 3 nodes out and the dip is not something i expected. It is one of those things that I was never told about, they were not cancerous.

I read the two comments about a dip and thought what dip? I had 6 nodes biopsied so I just had to go check in the mirror and sure enough the two armpits are not symmetrical, but the dip never caused any issues for me obviously. I’ve had issues with cording instead especially after my chest wall tumor resection so maybe that’s why I never noticed.

For the record, my breast cancer recurred in the chest wall 7 years after my DM so be sure to ask a lot of questions about the full treatment plan. I’m 4 years out from that and still taking Kisqali and Letrozole indefinitely. So far so good.

I had stage 1 BC 0.7 mm tumor found in a routine mammogram. ER/PR+ HER2 negative. I have the BRCA2 mutation so I opted for a double mastectomy hoping to be one and done. No reconstruction and no regrets. I also have the CHEK2 mutation but didn’t know that at the time. Most of the time I just go flat when running errands or around the house and neighborhood just for comfort. When I’m going out with friends to socialize, I usually wear my prostheses to make my clothes fit nicer. When I made my decision, I was 54, divorced and my dogs had no opinion. Best of luck with your decision and journey. You’re going to be okay.

Hi! @californiazebra:

I am so sorry about your breast cancer recurred in the chest wall 7 years after the DM:(( It must have been a painful & shocking discovery! How did they treat this recurrence of cancer besides having you taking Kisqali and Letrozole indefinitely?

Thanks for sharing your experiences to help us! Best wishes for your full recovery of health and happiness!

Yes, my heart just sank when I felt a tiny hard lump on my bony chest just two days before my annual ultrasound. I just knew it was cancer. I was in a bit of disbelief after being told I only had a 3% chance of recurrence. They removed the tumor and a bit of the pectoral muscle it was in. There was a positive margin in the muscle now too small to see on a scan. Hard to hear that too. I had 37 radiation treatments and then went on Kisqali and Letrozole. I can’t have chemo because of a rare pre-existing hereditary neuropathy. He said chemo would leave me in constant pain forever and I can’t even take pain meds. My oncologist said he wasn’t sure chemo would be effective on this cancer anyway. I also had PT as this surgery caused ROM issues and cording just as the mastectomies did. The cancer came back 3x as aggressive (Ki-67 50%) and highly hormone driven. My oncologist said the cancer was so aggressive that cells likely got away to other parts of my body before the tumor was removed. That was a rare moment of candor because he likes to sugarcoat things. I like facts. He tends to say something different every time I ask about my prognosis so it’s really just a wait and see. No visible tumors at the moment and I have CT scans of the chest, abdomen and pelvis every 6 months. There’s always scanxiety waiting for results. Initially I also had a PET scan, bone scan (different that DEXA), breast MRI and a brain MRI. I’ll stay on the targeted meds so long as they work (3.5 yrs so far). I’m not sure what’s left in the arsenal if another tumor pops up. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Again, so far so good and I’m pleasantly surprised by that. Thanks for asking.

I read the two comments about a dip and thought what dip? I had 6 nodes biopsied so I just had to go check in the mirror and sure enough the two armpits are not symmetrical, but the dip never caused any issues for me obviously. I’ve had issues with cording instead especially after my chest wall tumor resection so maybe that’s why I never noticed.

For the record, my breast cancer recurred in the chest wall 7 years after my DM so be sure to ask a lot of questions about the full treatment plan. I’m 4 years out from that and still taking Kisqali and Letrozole indefinitely. So far so good.

Yes, my heart just sank when I felt a tiny hard lump on my bony chest just two days before my annual ultrasound. I just knew it was cancer. I was in a bit of disbelief after being told I only had a 3% chance of recurrence. They removed the tumor and a bit of the pectoral muscle it was in. There was a positive margin in the muscle now too small to see on a scan. Hard to hear that too. I had 37 radiation treatments and then went on Kisqali and Letrozole. I can’t have chemo because of a rare pre-existing hereditary neuropathy. He said chemo would leave me in constant pain forever and I can’t even take pain meds. My oncologist said he wasn’t sure chemo would be effective on this cancer anyway. I also had PT as this surgery caused ROM issues and cording just as the mastectomies did. The cancer came back 3x as aggressive (Ki-67 50%) and highly hormone driven. My oncologist said the cancer was so aggressive that cells likely got away to other parts of my body before the tumor was removed. That was a rare moment of candor because he likes to sugarcoat things. I like facts. He tends to say something different every time I ask about my prognosis so it’s really just a wait and see. No visible tumors at the moment and I have CT scans of the chest, abdomen and pelvis every 6 months. There’s always scanxiety waiting for results. Initially I also had a PET scan, bone scan (different that DEXA), breast MRI and a brain MRI. I’ll stay on the targeted meds so long as they work (3.5 yrs so far). I’m not sure what’s left in the arsenal if another tumor pops up. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Again, so far so good and I’m pleasantly surprised by that. Thanks for asking.