Breast Cancer Care Forum

Hi ladies back in 2005 i had to have a mastectomy and chose to have an LD reconstruction the implant was then damaged with all the radiotherapy i had so my surgeon had to change the implant in 2006 i then chose to have an implant in the other breast to even them out and also wanted to be slightly bigger i was very happy with both the reconstruction side and the other but since then the side where i didn't have a mastectomy and recon has dropped a lot and they look so uneven its very noticeable when i wear a bikini and i hate it. I'm only 31 and don't feel at all happy with my breast i know i should just be grateful that i have them but i just want to feel confident. I spoke to my surgeon who agreed that the implant should be change and he would also do a lift at the same time however he said i would be left with 3 large scars and the scarring would be worse than on the mastectomy/recon side. My parents and partner don't want me to have more surgery as i have secondaries and am undergoing continues treatment and am often in a lot of pain but i really feel for my own confidence i need to have it done. I asked my surgeon if he could make the reconstruction side bigger to match the other side one is a 36DD and one about a 36CC he said her could but then another surgeon who works with him said she has never seen such a good job done of a mastectomy and reconstruction and she feels i should have that side made any bigger as i could ruin what i have. She also said the skin feels very thin around the breast and she is worried that going up a size could really damage the skin even more. What she thinks i should do is just have the implant changed in the other side to a smaller implant and have a lift done so it does not droop. This would mean going down to about a 36c/cc i agree with her that the skin is very thin and i can feel the implant so i understand her concern about going any bigger may damage the skin. I just am so unhappy with my breast with a bra on they look fine but without one they look bad with one drooping so much and so much bigger than the other. I just wanted some advice has anyone not been happy with theirs and had their implants changed? also has anyone had a lift done and been left with 3 large scars?? where the scars very bad?? i have been told i will need a scar going the whole way around the nipple one running from nipple down to base of breast and one the whole way around the base of the breast. I just wonder how so many glamor women IE Katie Price have their breast made soooooooo big if the skin stretches and goes thin how come they can go as big as they like but i cant. Again I know I should just be grateful that after a mastectomy I could have a reconstruction done and know with a bra i look fine but im just not happy with them :( sorry for long moan i have been asking family and friends what to do but non of them r going through what we r going through so thought i would ask others to see what they think and to see if any of u have had it done love Clairemm xx ... View more

Hi, havent been on here in years so hi to everyone, i have secondaries to the bones and i use to take 48 pills day and methadone twice a day morphine which i could take every hour and ketamine nothing was working so i decided to come of all pills and see if pain got worse but i stayed on the methadone. My pain has got no worse and its great not to be having to take all that medication in one day as i was so drugged up and so tired all the time and still in pain, but the problem with he methadone is i get sooooooooooooooooooo constipated. I have tried everything, senna, movicol, docusate, lactolose and a few other things nothing works no matter how much i take. In the end i get so constipated where i havent been to the toilet for months on end propally i end up in agony to the point where i have had to call an ambulance out b4 and been admitted to the hospital where two hospitals daid they have never seen someone so constipated. I saw a bowel specialist and he did all the internal tests but said i had ulcers due to steroidal tablets and i had to avoid them. However i havent taken those types of pills now for well over a year and still suffering with constipation. I have heard this is VERY common with people who take methadone so i wondered iof anyome else takes it and do they suffer like i do if so what helps u to not be constipated????????????? I HATE it my stomache swells up and im sooooooo blocked up that i cant eat more than a coupke of mouthfuls and then i feel sick and am full. i can go months were i only go to the toilet a tiny bit. PLEASE HELP IF U HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM AS ME LOVE CLAIREMM ... View more

Hi ladies, I havent been on here in soooooooooooo long as life has been so hectic, i once asked if there were any younger women with secondaries living in or around the Carshalton area who fancy meeting up maybe once a month for a chat, maybe lunch or just a coffee. I am 31 years old and have secondaries to the bones i was first diagnosed in 2005 at the age of 24 had a mastectomy with immediate reconstruction and 2 years of intense treatment then on to Herceptin and hormone treatment. On new years day in 2009 the cancer returned in the bones and spread fairly quickly to other bones and my pelvis i have been on treatment since 2009 and have had to undergo major surgery to my spine. I find i never meet any younger women i had all my bc treatment at St Georges in Tooting and then i moved right near to the RM in Sutton and thought great there must be some younger women/men here but i have never seen any. I do find it isolating even tho my parents, family, friends and partner are amazing and so very supportive at the end of the day they don't know what im going through and its hard to talk to them about my worries and concerns as i dont want to worry them :( Would love to hear from anyone living near me or who attend the RM in Sutton maybe we could try to arrange a meet up point for us younger ones. Love Clairemm (HAPPY XMAS EVERYONE) XXXX ... View more

Hi I was wondering if any younger women with secondaries would like to meet up. I live in Carshalton 5 mins set from the royal marsden in Surrey and would love to meet up with some younger women as I feel very isolated. I was diagnosed with bc when I was 24 back in 2005 and then in January 2009 I was diagnosed with secondaries to the bones and bone marrow. I am now going through chemotherapy for the 3rd time. Would love to meet with some younger women or men who either have breast cancer or secondaries as I feel very isolated, I thought when I moved to the royal marsden from st georges there would be alot of younger women there but I never see any. I am now 30. So if u would like to meet up for a coffee and chat in Sutton let me know. Love clairemm xx ... View more