I saw Mr Bonomi at Worthing Hospital yesterday. He is still VERY confident that he can do the Lipomodelling, despite my problems with chest tightness,etc. He told me more about the procedure and how he aims to give me a good breast shape by moving some of the skin over the ribs upwards to create the lower pole of the breast and infra-mammary crease, and pulling the lovely “dog ears” I have under each arm forwards to create the upper pole of the breast. He said that will then give him enough tissue to inject the fat.
My husband asked him about the damage to the chest muscles and he said that they are dissected away from their insertion point over the ribs and shoulders. If he finds it necessary he will stitch mine back in place. I was worried that would make the tightness worse and he said only initially.
My surgery will involve a 2 night stay in hospital. Ordinarily it would be done as a day case but I think mine is more complicated than most. He also said that it will take 4 surgeries to achieve the finished result.
Another thing he mentioned is that the Trust have now agreed to fund some of these surgeries being done at Goring Hall Private Hospital to get the operating list down and he said that if he offers patients an operation date that they refuse he is putting them back at the bottom of the list rather than just slotting them in when it’s convenient for them.
He couldn’t give me an idea of when but did say that I’m number 22 on the list of delayed reconstructions.
I feel more hopeful after seeing him but I think that if the problems that can arise from breast surgery were more widely publicised then we’d be better informed to make our decisions. I remember when I signed my consent form being told of possible complications and chronic pain being one of them and my Consultant saying “but I don’t think that will happen to you”! Not really good enough, is it?
Trudie. X