I am meant to have reconstruction at some point. The breast care nurse said my healthy breast would then need. lifting and the nipple repositioning to get a good match. She said there ‘could be some’ loss of nipple sensation.
Has anyone been through this and can you still feeling anything in your healthy nipple? I have already lost one nipple to mastectomy. If I can’t feel anything in the other, then I will effectively have been neutered sexually.
I had DIEP, followed by my other breast being reduced to “match up”, with the nipple being lifted and moved - all is well, feeling is fine and I couldn’t be happier, both with my belly boob and my new perky one!
Hi JudSawyer
I had my BC lump removal combined with a breast lift and reduction, then had the healthy breast done to match. I was warned that there was a possibility of loss of nipple sensation but I have been lucky (or had a skilled surgeon) and recovered full sensation on both sides. I kept a log of all that happened, so I can report that I first felt that feeling was starting to return around 10 weeks after the surgery, and it was definitely returning a few weeks after that. Now, 9 months on for the BC side and 7 months on for the healthy side, they both have good sensation. The only problem I had was messy healing on the “healthy” side which has left the areola looking a bit ragged and will probably need tattooing to improve appearance at some point.
Top tips I wish I had been told - massage the scars to ensure they don’t end up as a thick sausage-like line under your breast (go to a physio and get her to show you how), and use silicone gel ointment to help the scars to fade.
Sarah x
i havent had a mx but wle and that has left nipple feeling very funny , im told its the nerves repairing themselfs and that it can in some cases take yrs to do but i do have feeling there tbf i think i have more feeling than be for and its only be 3 weeks since wle for me (by the way my nipple is much higher now so it has been moved lol ) . i watch a boob reduction the other week on tv and they never took the nipple away they cut round it and then moved it up said that way nerve stay intact i would ask how they are going to do the op
once my chemo and rads are over i want my good boob sorting out a rough 4 inc bigger right now and bc boob still has swelling i didnt class myself as small (dd) but right now i have 1 c cup and 1 dd
hope it all goes well for you
maz xx
Hi, I also had mx on left side and reduction, uplift and therefore the nipple being moved on my good side. I was warned about the possibility of lack of sensation but pleased to report that there was sensation there almost from day one and I couldnt be happier!!!
Oh, thank you to everyone for taking the time to respond!
Cheshire Cheese – where do I get silicone gel? Is there a brand I should look out for? Maybe it would help my existing mastectomy scar.
HoneyBee121 – What you have written about cutting AROUND the nipple, rather than just excising it on its own, sounds interesting. I will certainly ask the surgeon about that.
Thanks again to everybody – very helpful – and GOOD LUCK and BEST WISHES to everyone going through this horrible crap!
I got some silicone tape on prescription from my doctor. It is horrendously expensive to buy it yourself. I imagine if you can get the tape, you can also get the gel on prescription. I am using Dermatrix tape, but its too early to say if it is making a difference yet - I’m only 9 weeks post-op. I’m using it on my tummy scar, but not on my boob so I can compare the difference. Will feedback after a few months!
Flossie
Sorry JudSawyer, didn’t see your follow up question until now - that’s the trouble with the poor design of this website, everything gets swamped by new posts within a couple of days.
Silcone gel - runny stuff, comes in a tube, SilGel was the brand my physio recommended and it’s working really well, I’ve been using it for about 6 weeks now, I just wish I’d started with it sooner after the scars first healed over. It’s about £24 to buy a small tube which will probably last you about a month, or you can ask your GP for it on prescription - which of course you will get free because you have asked for your free prescriptions that you are entitled to as a cancer patient haven’t you?! Or your GP might say no, apparently some do.
Also noticed the query about how they move the nipple - the classic breast lift op has it done that way. A keyhole shaped scar, and the nipple moved complete with its nerves and blood supply - amazing! Google photos of mastopexy and you will see.
Hi,
I had my healthy breast lifted and reduced about 4 weeks ago and I was terrified of either losing my nipple altogether (having lost my other one to mastectomy 5 months before) or losing the sensation but I am pleased to say that as soon as I awoke from the surgery the sensation was there… actually it is far more sensitive than it ever was although I believe this may not be permanent.
On a less positive side the whole experience was much tougher than I expected… not physically but emotionally I was a bit of a wreck after. I’m not sure if it was the look of my scarred healthy breast or the memories of the mastectomy that flood back… pleased to say things are better now
best wishes to all x
I’m having surgery to reduce and lift my good breast on June 17th and have also been told that I may loose sensation in the nipple. I’m prepared to risk that as I am desperate to look even. I am very lopsided and am unable to get a good balance even with a beanie bag. I was wandering how long the recovery time was. I am going to get some SilGel, I havve used Bio Oil in the past but one bit of my mastectomy scar is quite lumpy.
Hi Cadi
I am certainly a lot more even now, it wasn’t so much volume with me but there was a very big “height” difference!
I recovered physically very quickly, I could have come home the next day but they had booked me in for two nights and I decided to stay and be looked after and as I said in my previous post I was a bit of a wreck emotionally although I think that may have had something to do with my surgeon asking me to stop Tamoxifen 3 weeks before the surgery… hormones all over the place!!
A week after my surgery I was out and about all weekend, visiting friends, clothes shopping with my husband(there’s that retail therapy again) and out for dinner. I didn’t drive for 2 weeks but did feel I could have earlier. The recovery is a breeze compared to mastectomy and I’m now quite proud of my small but pert boobs!
I need to find out about SilGel…I too have had scar problems…but hey ho
The SilGel is only to help soften and reduce the colour of the scars, it won’t deal with any lumpiness. For that you need massage. I went to a physio, she showed me what to do and I’ve been massaging the lumps away daily since then and the overall feel is so much softer and nicer. Eventually I won’t need to bother any more, or perhaps only massage it once per week. It’s also stopped the scars under my breasts sticking to my rib cage, which they were doing, so my breasts now move more naturally as well.
I wish I’d been told earlier that this kind of help is available, I would have gone sooner and it wouldn’t have been so difficult and painful to deal with the lumpy scars.
Complications after breast lifts are relatively rare. The main three are bleeding, infection, and scarring. Your surgeon will give you instructions for preparing that will help lower your risk of complications. Those instructions will include such things as not smoking, making sure you are off medications that may make bleeding more likely, and taking antibiotics if necessary.