Has anyone had an implant put back in?

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Hi there all

I was wondering if any of you have had the experience of having an implant put back in?

I had a mastectomy and LD flap recon last September but developed a really severe infection in the area at the end of rads in dec. I was on IV antibiotics for weeks but they wouldnt clear it so I had to have the implant taken out in Jan. Now I am left with a pretty disfigured area - with a defect where the skin has been pulled in. (the flap is still there).

My doc has now referred me to the plastic surgeon who says he’ll do a free TRAM flap. I am pretty nervous about this. He says it is best to wait a few more months or so to extend the healing time after rads which gives me more time to decide.

He has also offered to reinsert the implant. He says he thinks this would only be a short term solution but does admit there is the possibility it might look OK (the first time it looked brill!). The area has been quite traumatised with all this (I had 2 lumpectomies and chemo before the mastec) and I am concerned about the damage.

Has anyone had a similar experience? Any replies would be much appreciated.

Regards
Caz

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Sorry I haven’t had implants put back in but my surgeon said that I couldn’t have rads if I had an implant as there was the risk of infection or malformation of the implants so i am surprised you had rads. As it was chemo was the best option for me so I never had to decide. Its a shame that you have to have a further op as tram comes from the stomach doesn’t it? I have however heard of people who have had problems and just had the implant replaced - hopefully some will write on this thread for you. Good Luck
XX

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Hi Caz

Yes, I had a very similar experience. Had bilateral mastectomies with immediate reconstruction with silicone implants. However, 3 days out of hospital had an infection in the left side, hospitalised for 9 days, 3 of which they spent trying to control the infection, when that didn’t work they removed the implant left side and reduced the right side, where I had a haematoma. I lost patch of skin about the size of a 50p piece, so was quite disfigured on the left side. Had to then wait approximately a few months, until things healed, they did initially think a skin graft might be necessary, but it wasn’t, it healed by itself. However, the left side healed tight into the muscle and although the Plastic Surgeon tried a couple of times to loosen it up, my left side is still unsightly. Once I’d waited a few months they then put inflaters in and gradually built the breasts up ready to have further final silicone implants inserted, which I finally had done in December 2005. Although the breasts aren’t brilliant because of the scarring and tightness, plus I’ve put on a bit of weight since then, so that doesn’t help. The top of the breast has put on weight and I have creasing unfortunately where I’ve filled out. I will say, however, that in a decent bra they look great, you’d never know in a bra or low cut top, believe it or not. I hate them out of a bra, but friends and family all say they look great in a bra or low cut top. I’ve been back to see my Plastic Surgeon, who is intending to inject some fat into the area where the creasing is to try and fill that bit out, but then as he has warned me that isn’t without risk either, could damage the implants, so I am going to have a good think about it, before I jump in.

Julie

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Hi Holly and Julie

Thanks for your replies girls.

Julie sounds like you have had a similar experience. Infections are a real nusiance. I was so pleased with my recon when it was done and everything went fine and healed really well until I had rads. I think now looking back that I probably had rads too soon after my op. I get bad seromas and there was still fluid in my back but the docs were keen to push ahead. The plastic surgeon hasn’t mentioned anything to me about loosening up the skin so I dont know if I need that. I think I’m gonna wait another month or so to allow more healing and then talk to him again. You can never really know what it will look like or how things will turn out. Even the surgeons dont know which i not too reassuring but I guess medicine is not an exact science. I think you are right to wait. I may get a second opintion (or third) and advise you to do the same. Afterall, once it’s done there is no going back and I never thought I would end up like this! when I had the implant out they told me it wasnt a big deal at all but now they are saying…well we dont know. By the way do you get pain in the area? I find it hard at night when I lie on my left side. It is uncomfortable and it does hurt after a while when I wear a bra. Also the skin below my breast is still really red and sore from the radiation.

As regards the rads, Holly, I was told that there was a risk with implants and rads (with maybe some hardening) but that any serious complications were rare. I just hoped i would get through it and everything seemed to be going great right until the last day when my skin broke and an infection got in. I guess I’ve just been unlucky. I had chemo before the op but they wanted me to have rads too as I had nodes involved. Phew what a year I have had. My annus horribilis! lol! Think I need a break now from even thinking about it and I reckon I’ll give myself a few more months before I decide anything.
Well thanks again and best of luck to both of you. Treat yourselves to something specia and take it easyl!
XXCazze

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Hi Cazze

I know, I tend to agree. I might wait a bit before I make a final decision. They sent the paperwork for me to fill in and let them know if there are any dates that are best to be avoided regarding surgery, and I thought “Oh hell”, not sure if I should go ahead. My partner thinks I should just accept things the way they are and not put myself through any more, so I am definitely not just going to jump into it. I had a total abdominal hysterectomy last summer, even more reason not to put myself through any more surgery. I’ve never been very happy about my hysterectomy muffin top belly since the operation. Always had a flat tummy and now hate this, so when I saw the Plastic Surgeon about my breasts I jokingly said “Can’t you take some of this bloopy awful belly and add it to my boobs”. He said if you take any flesh from the tummy I’d have a looser tummy even more, and he looked at me and said “I can’t give you a tummy tuck”. Then he started to have a good look at it, and he said he could possibly do a revision of the scar and tissue, which would effectively be what they call a lower tummy tuck, which would give me a longer scar, but actually tighten all the scar and loose flesh up, which is very tempting. Having said all of that it doesn’t look horrendous or anything, I’m still a size 10, but unfortunately don’t like the looseness that is there now.

I have got used to the aches and pains in my breasts now though. At the beginning they were really painful. Initial reconstruction made me feel as if I had two very large bricks in my chest, but then later, after things went wrong, and then they started rebuilding them up gradually by injecting them every few months that wasn’t too bad. I have to say I still get aches and twinges 3 years on, and I have a degree of numbness in certain parts, but I suppose it’s what we have to put up with. I still hurt sometimes if I roll over too quickly in bed. They’re also quite hard. They’re not soft and spongey at all like our own boobs.

I was fortunate in that I didn’t have any radiotherapy or chemotherapy, or depending on the way you look at it, maybe unfortunate. They said the radical surgery, plus the fact it wasn’t in my nodes, the grading of the cancer and the fact they said although the cancer could easily spread to another breast it wasn’t one of the more aggressive ones for spreading around the body, if that makes sense. I had a bit of a liver scare a few months ago, when they found two patches on my liver, and they said liver mets couldn’t be excluded, and I thought “Oh my god, they made a huge mistake”. Then after the MRI they found out the two patches were a cyst and a hemangioma. So when I was undergoing my recon I didn’t have to wait for radiotherapy or chemo. I have heard of problems with reconstruction and patients who have had rads though on a few occasions. My Surgeon said to me at the time that if I needed rads or chemo, (this was in the first few weeks before they knew which way they were treating me), that reconstruction would be delayed.

You think at the time everything is going to be straightforward don’t you. You never envisage all the crap. You tend to think it’s bad enough having the cancer, and having to go through all the surgery anyway, you don’t realise you could be going back and forward for months and months trying to get sorted.

Anyway I have waffled on enough. Hope you get sorted. I am sure you will get there in the end.

Julie x