mastectomy plus immediate Ld flap no implant

[Orchard]

No more treatment. I had lumpectomy, chemo and radio Feb-Sept 2013 but then discovered I'm BRCA1 positive so my mx was risk reducing.

[Molliana]

Ohh I feel for you. you sound like you are doing well tho and over the worst. Are you having any other treatment?

[Orchard]

I won't lie, it does hurt but the pain relief is great. I was on a morphine pump in hospital for a day then oral dihydrocodeine, paracetamol and ibuprofen. I now take para and ibu during day and codeine in the morning (to get me going!) and at night ( to help me sleep). It feels like I'm wearing a very tight corset. I only had drains out yesterday so last night was the first time I tried side sleeping but the drain sights were sore to lie on and also I'm quite bruised at sides of boobs. I will keep trying and will get there!

[Molliana]

Sorry typo ...why you "can't" sleep on your side

[Molliana]

Hi!
Wow. You are doing well. Does it hurt? I still can't understand why you can sleep on your side ...well maybe if you have had both done I guess but surely the side I haven't had done will be for sleeping on?

[Orchard]

Hi Molliana
I've just had double mx with immediate LD recon, 8 days ago! I am finding sleeping and sitting comfortably quite difficult but with lots of pillows including a V pillow I do get to sleep but am very stiff when I wake up. Remember though I am only 8 days post op!! I sleep on my back and thought that I'd be able to get onto my side once all the drains were out but haven't so far! Walking about is fine but obviously you can't overdo it to start with! Am up for lots of questions so please feel free to fire away! I found someone on here who'd had almost same as me 4 weeks previously and it was great to bombard her with questions. The more you know before, the better prepared you are!!

[2ss]

Yes you are lying on your back

[Molliana]

Silly question but after surgery, when you wake up, are you lying on your back??

[Mel66]

I'm 7 months down the line from my LD Flap recon with implant and can sleep on both sides. For the first month or so I just slept on my back with a V shaped pillow. After that I was able to sleep on my non-surgery side and have been sleeping in any position now for a fair few months. It all looks very natural and a good match to my remaining boob, albeit a bit smaller (I was a DD cup) Probably going to book myself in for a nipple recon soon to finish it off.

As others have mentioned, you'll have several drains in place for a while which are tiresome to lug about and arrange but healing was pretty quick and everywhere is pretty numb so very little pain involved. Feeling is still slowly returning but there are still some quite numb areas.

Mine was MX and ANC with immediate recon. I subsequently had chemo but not radiotherapy although my surgeon did say at the time that he wasn't too concerned about the recon being compromised if I had turned out to need radio.

[kitten_mad]

Mine was also a C cup. but I had my Mx a year after Rads and chemo - mainly because the cancer came back in the skin, You can't rely on the lipofill  covering the gaps as your body tends to reabsorb the fat quite soon afterwards. I have had lipo twice and yes it was also done on the NHS, I also had nipple reconstruction too. Also just to warn you that Lipo is a very painful experience indeed.

K M

[Molliana]

Did they say why they didn't want to do an immediate reconstruction? Or was it you that didn't want to? It's just that it's highly likely I am having chemo and radiotherapy too. Not herceptin tho.

[artemis17]

The node removal is strange to get used to as theres first numbness but also a "burning" sensation, try to massage the upper arm area and do all the exercises youre given , although its hard at first, its worth perservering as it can prevent cording and speeds healing. Worst bit is even now is having a numb armpit means keeping it hair-free is a tricky job.

The lipo is done on the NHS, not sure if all hospitals do it, but its becoming more common. It basically uses your own fat to fill in dents, add volume, match you up etc once the inital surgery settles  as without an implant, (just the LD flap) there is a size restriction. I can only quote what ive been told though, so im sure youre surgeon/team will have all the info you need.

My recon wasnt immediate as i had to have chemo, rads and herceptin, but i had a skin sparing Mx so although lost my nipple area I didnt need to use much back skin, just enough to create a new aerola/nipple when the time comes. Its a whole new world, but soon becomes familar once you go through it.

[Molliana]

Thank you.
Yes I am having nodes removed. I already had a snb done with the second lumpectomy. Straight after surgery they said both removed were negative. Unfortunately when they came back from the lab they said there was a micro bit in one so I guess they are doing a clearance and i have to keep everything crossed again.
interesting about the lipofil. I am a C Cup too and am hoping they can get enough muscle to match them. I hadn't heard of the lipofil. Is it done with the nhs?

[artemis17]

Molliana I think you'll be able to sleep in the same way as after your lumpectomy, just make sure you get comfortable as it does take a while to get used to the tightness across your back. Alternatively try being slightly more upright using the V pillow as well.
As I haven't had an implant, my new boob is pliable & has a natural droop to it, although its still a bit smaller than my good boob, im pleased with it so far & the lipo fil is to smooth out the upper field where there isn't fat or breast tissue. This will also increase the size back to my natural C cup. It involves taking fat from another area such as tummy or live handles and re-inserting it to the new site.
I think as long as you manage your expectations & give yourself time to recuperate you'll do great. Like I said although i felt knocked for 6 for a few weeks, once recovery started, I progressed quickly. Are you having any nodes removed too?.
Good luck when the time comes and I'll keep an eye out for any posts.
X

[Molliana]

Artemis17 you sound really positive. When I have my two lumpectomys I was still sleeping on my side sort of hugging a pillow so that my sore boob was resting on it. Maybe I will be able to get into that position. I really need to sleep as I am on my own with a four year old. You do sound positive. Are you pleased with it? I was beginning to worry that I had made the wrong decision. What does lipofil involve?
Kitten_mad thank you also. Perhaps I should adjust my expectations a little x

[kitten_mad]

Molliana - I think it is the solidness of the implant and the weight of the constructed breast.  Obviously the new breast doesn't flatten itself during sleep like a real one would too.  It has taken me over a year to be able to try to sleep on my side again, but once you start healing your body can go into your old sleeping position in the middle of the night. However, that does mean that you can be a bit uncomfortable when you wake up!  I am not sure if this would apply to everyone though and maybe it depends on the size of the new breast too?

Anyway that's my experience of it so far, and hope that helps

KM X

[artemis17]

Hi there,
I had LD recon, no implant in October & will have lipo fill Iin a couple of months. I've had a great recovery, scars are now thin white lines and within 6 weeks I was sleeping "normally", on my side, and have no problem sleeping on my front either. As already mentioned, a V pillow was a great help for the first few weeks, plus I wore a sports type bra 24/7. RRecovery was slow for the first couple of weeks but 5 weeks was a turning point... I missed not having a bath for 3 weeks though.
There is numbness to my back & as I had quite a lot of LD muscle used ( as no implant) I did have a haematoma that needed drained several times.
If you have any questions feel free to ask.
🙂

[Molliana]

Why is it difficult to sleep on your left side. I just assumed it would be ok as they haven't done anything to that side?

[kitten_mad]

Hi, Mine was single and Right side (but with implant as well as LD muscle). I had to sleep sitting up with V Shaped pillow too at first but gradually weaned myself off of it. I still sleep with 3 pillows though ( 18 months later), it is very hard to sleep on your side but I am gradually doing that now - my left side. I would find it impossible to sleep on my right side. It's hard because the new "boob" is still solid unlike your real one, hence the extra pillows, hope you understand what I mean!  If you have any questions no matter how weird please feel free to PM me.

Good luck, it is tough at first as you sore both at the  front and back.

Take care

K M x

[FizzB]

I'm doing really well now thank you. Sleeping was a worry initially as I had a total of six drains post-op, four of which were in my back, however the medication helped at lot, and I imagine you will have one "good" side which will be more comfortable. I usually sleep on my left as well but am still sleeping propped up on my back as it seems most comfortable at the moment. A v-shaped pillow has been a huge help. You may be different though; with a single mx you may have more comfort on your side than I do. My back is the source of most of my discomfort but hugely improved over the last week and am only using pain relief during the evenings and at night when it seems worse.
Lisa

[Molliana]

I am having a single mx. How are you feeling? For some reason I am wondering how your back feels after? I was thinking about sleeping and i like to sleep on my left side and the op is all happening on my right side. Will I be able to still?

[FizzB]

I'm 5 weeks post-op now Molliana (although I did have implants as well). I had a bilateral mastectomy though; are you the same or are you having a single mx? I'm more than happy to answer any questions you may have in relation to my experience xx

[Molliana]

Has anyone had one of these?
I would like to hear all about your experience. I am booked in!