Hello Ladies - I’m new to the BC club being diagnosed about 4 weeks ago - DCIS in left boob 40mm and high grade - very lucky it’s been caught early and now looking for any words of advice on surgery. I’ve been researching the Masectomy Vs Lumpectomy options, and it appears both are equally successful for DCIS. So initially I thought I’d opt for Lumpectomy/radiotherapy option so I could hold onto my boob. My surgeon said I could make a decision on which route I wanted to take (as I have large enough boobs to cope with a 6cm wide local excision) but in his words “if you were my wife I’d be advising you to opt for the Masectomy”. So that really threw me and I wondered what my boob would look like after having such a big amount taken from my boob. So my questions to you ladies are as follows:
Is there anyone of you ladies who has been in my position - big boobs about e-g cup size, had 40 mm DCIS, high grade and opted for lumpectomy? If so, how did it go? Did the Lumpectomy give you clear margins in the 1st surgery or did they have to go in a 2nd time to clear your margins? And more importantly how did you boob look after?
I suppose I was hoping that by keeping my boob for a bit longer, it would be checked annually at mammogram for any reoccurence and if anything did come back then I would have to resort to a Masectomy then.
Does anyone know if you do have a Masectomy with immediate reconstruction, how can they look for signs of recoccurence if you’ve had an implant or your own tissue from something like DIEP FLAP surgery? That would be one of my concerns.
Anyway would be nice to hear what you think on the Masectomy Vs Lumpectomy front - I know I’m actually very lucky that I am able to choose which surgery to opt for at the moment as many ladies are not in this position.
Feel I’ve joined a very special network of brave, strong and supportive woman - thank you all xx