I’ve got a date for my delayed DIEP reconstruction. It’s 30th June at the Royal Free in London.I am feeling a strange mixture of happiness, excitement and fear. Has anyone got any advise or experiences of either the op or this hospital?
Hi
I had a delayed Tram Reconstruction on Dec 14 2010, slightly different. It was a very big op (10 Hours). I was a bit unwell the first 3 or 4 days mainly due to the aneasthetic and morphine. By day 4 I was just on paracetomol and ibuprofen and started to feel much better. I didnt have a great deal of pain, almost nothing from the breast area just discomfort. The tummy area felt tight but once the drains came out felt better. I felt quite weak for the first 3 weeks. Help in the house would be good, my husband was off for 3 weeks and by week 4 I was starting to do some household chores myself. Just take it easy and do a little at a time dont overdo it. Its now 5 months since my op. I feel good and everything looks great. My new breast is a very good match to my original breast. I am on the list to get my oroginal breast uplifted and reduced slightly but to be honest there is hardly any difference. In a bra you wouldnt know. Please ask any questions that are worrying you.
Take care
Carolyn x
Thanks Carolyn,
It’s useful to know that I will need help for a while afterwards when I get home.
Hi
I am due to have a mx and diep flap sometime in june at the weelington london I will have the date this week sometime, people have told me to have lots of pillows when i come home hope your diep go well sue
Hi Sue
Good luck with your op too.
Et
Hi
I go to the Royal Free for radiotherapy and everyone there is extremely helpful. It has a good reputation which is good to know!
Good luck with your recon - I will be following in your footsteps towards the end of the year
xxx
Hi et,
hope you are doing ok still waiting for my date seem it should be by end of june, take care sue
Got my date now 14 july so just got wait now hope you are ok sue
Got my date now 14 july so just got wait now hope you are ok sue
That’s good news Sue, waiting for a date can be frustrating at least once you have a date you can start to come to terms with what lies ahead. I have two weeks to go and am starting to feel nervous now.
Hi Et
I am not going to say not to be nervous because I feel just the same keep breaking down in tears just thinking about it . Hope you are ok I just got my pj etc for hospital so ready hopeing to enjoy few days out next week with grandchildren . Who your PS my one is Mr F at the weelington in london so arranging friends flat for husband to stay so he near,
take care big hugs suex
Hi - my first post on here though not sadly my first time with BC 
I had a Muscle sparing TRAM recon/mastectomy with immediate recon on the 6th June and cant pretend it was entirely pain free, however the drugs are great - the catheter was fine, surgeons fab and I was allowed home 7 days post op.
Am now in bed with lots of pillows and getting everyone else to do everything for me pretty much! Did too much too soon after lumpectomy and paid the price with delayed recovery…
Will need a stage 2 op after chemo for uplift, reduction on good side (poss mastect) and new nipple on recon but all in all pretty happy with it, and every day gets easier and better 
M.xx
Hi
I had LD flap revision surgery at the Royal Free in Feb 2010. Although the admin on the day of the op was a nightmare - the receptionist was rude and had no concept of patients confidentiality I found the staff on Ward 8 much better than the team at the hospital where I had my original reconstruction (2008) which failed. The staff at the Plastics Clinic 14 are great, quite sensitive to emotions and very knowledgeable. I had nothing but praise for them though the actual reconstruction is not fantastic the Team were much better than anything I have encountered to date. I had nipple recon there in Nov 10 and so far so good. Now just the tattooing and I may be finished by the 3 yr mark
xx
Hi Recon Ladies
Sue - I too have been buying PJ’s, a V shaped pillow and tray to eat/work in bed. My surgeon is Miss J, she seems very nice and has been very kind to me while I have been pestering her for a date. I am finding it hard to focus on anything after the operation, I just keep thinking of all the things I need to do beforehand.
M - It sounds as though you are doing realy well with your recovery, you stay in bed and make the most of it.
Jane - I’m glad the staff at the Royal Free are nice (except the admin teams, but that seems to go with the job!) I expect I will be back there at some time in the future for a nipple too, but at the moment I’ll just settle for a breast!
Et
Hi All,
ET, I know what you mean I keep thinging about the surgery everyday and simple things make me cry , so I am thinking off you take care if need to chat I am here.
I did find local support group which is helping
M make sure you get lots of rest and take care.
Jane wishing you all the best
Sue
Hi et,
I had DEIP Flap & MX last October, and have recovered well from it. Take large panties with you as you will not be able to wear anything that touches the tummy wound. Also take comfy trousers in with you to wear home, dont go for ‘fashion’ go for comfort! I also took in a button up front cardi easy for getting on and off rather than dragging stuff over your head. Get lots of pillows as you will need to support your legs when you are in bed I found it impossible to lie flat to begin with. I over did things in the garden(stupid) thought I felt OK and ended up tearing a muscle in my side, so do take things easy when you get home. I was also told to take in support bras, I bought a couple from Macom recommeded by my PS, they are a very good company and if anything isn’t suitable will reimburse with no probelms.
As you know I was DX last month with another primary in my other breast - only 8 months on from my last MX which was totally devastating, I am going into hospital this Friday and the Op is the next day 25th this is at the McIndoe Clinic, i know all the staff there and the care is wonderful, I have every confidence in them. If only I had known about this - in fact if it had manifested itself earlier I could have had everything done all in one go. Cant do that now so will have to have LD instead. Just hope it goes as well as the other op.
Will be thinking of you on 30th, take care and hugs to you, Chrissyx
Thanks Chrissy,
Good luck for 25th, I hope everything goes well for you.
hope you are doing ok i am in tom for my mx and diep take care sue
I hope it all went OK for you Sue. I ended up having to have a second op as a small area needed to be removed a week after the recon as the blood suply hadn’t reached to the end of the flap, but once that was done they let me go home, after ten days in hospital. I am recovering well, though still tired and sore, but I am pleased with my new boob and cleavage, after two years without one it feels so good to be able to wear what I want again and not cover up in roll neck sweaters.
Let me know how you got on when you are up to it.
Et
hi et
Sorry to hear you had to go back to surgery but glad you are at home now and on the road to recover. My surgery when well, took about 10 hours and I had special nursing for the first few days but the flap seem to be good see the ps on monday to remove all the dressing.
come out of hosptial yesterday so had to be in for 8 days sadly however when took the cather out I could not stop going so now how to wear one all the time see bladder spesialist on wed next week hope she will fix the problem, this may mind more surgery hope not still very soar and tried all the time but at less it all over now, my BS and PS have been great in fact PS stated with me at hospitsl the first night just in case I had any problems he even made sure they used a pain block for my breast area and stomach so pain was not too bad ever anyway need to go bend over laptop and it bit painfully now take care off yourself I am here if you need me. sue xxx