Mastectomy and breast reconstruction pros and cons?

Welcome, Suzant! I'm so glad that you chose to contribute to this discussion board, especially to share with @mlk and others.

This is all so new. I'm sure @roch @mlk @cindylb @nataliehope @trixie1313 @cgirl0721 and others can understand the emotional impact of getting undressed and taking showers.

I chose to have my own belly fat put in my breasts. Love that its all me!

I didn’t have that option. My PS said that I didn’t have enough abdominal tissue. I disagree! Lol! My first expansion was 100cc each. I had 100c filled during surgery. Total of 200cc so far. My PS is only filling the expanders with air until I’m done expanding at which time they will swap out for saline. The first day after the expansion I actually felt more comfortable because it stopped the expander from rising from my chest wall. The second day I was in quite a lot of pain similar to the first week after surgery. I think it just aggravated some fuzzy nerve endings. My skin does not feel tight like I thought it would. Although the expanders are wide and flat I feel a little better about my shape. I go back in two weeks for another fill. It’s been 25 days since surgery!

What is your PS? Fat can b taken from hips also.

The iron bra gets better!

What is iron bra?

My breast cancer was invasive ductal in the left breast. I chose double mastectomy with reconstruction with expanding implants. An MRI showed an area in the right breast they wanted to check prior to surgery. However I decided I had chosen double mastectomy and did not do additional testing. Blessed be to god I chose the double mastectomy. A second cancer (invasive lobular) was found in the right breast. Borders were wide and lymph nodes clear. No chemo or radiation needed. 6 months after surgery I had my second surgery to replace the expanding implants with regular implants. I am very pleased with the results. I have a possible final surgery where Oscar Manrique (my plastic surgeon) may perform liposuction to add my own fat around the implants (to add fullness). I did NOT do nipple saving. I believe 10-15 percent become necrotic. I chose NoT to take the chance of losing the reconstruction due to a possible nipple saving. I will be getting tattoos in the future. I feel blessed to have done my surgery at mayo. My surgeon, the nurses the care team and my plastic surgeon have been beyond wonderful!! My reconstruction simply looks like a breast lift would look (minus the nipples). I will be praying for you. So many decisions to make. Hugs.