Hi KB, I am single too - or else divorced and in a fairly new relationship at the point of dx - and obviously the first thought is pleased get rid of the bc and get me better but in the back of my mind and during the night I would worry about other aspects of it like cosmetic and relationships so it was just to say in case that is also the case ith you that the rest can be fixed. Hate my dent although I should see it as the scar from a battle won. I am a year on and clear of “anything suspicious.” Just take one step and one day at a time but there is no question too small and don’t think anything is too trivial. We know what it is like. I honestly think your stage where you go through the shock and the “what does all of this mean” is worse than when you are getting through treatment. I had a lumpectomy and then they needed to take a bit more tissue as the margins weren’t clear so that is why I ended up with a big dent.
Mastectomy is possible - although they didn’t initially say this to me, the oncologist at one point said to me I could have opted to have one but most people prefer to have the least surgery possible, but it is also possible to have a mastectomy and immediate reconstruction. Sometimes people also have the chemo before that to reduce the size of the lump and then have surgery. There are different options.
Basically they need to get rid of it, give you least chance of it coming back and leave you looking as near as possible to how you do beforehand and there are different routes of achieving those things xx