Breast reconstruction operation

Hello Boogl and welcome! Hey, it is ok to be scared. That's a very normal feeling. When is your surgery? I personally opted not to have reconstruction but I have several friends that did. According to them, yes it is worth the pain. They each are very pleased w/ their new breast(s). Each of them have experienced different degrees of pain and, the first couple of days, wondered why the heck they did it. But, once the initial pain was over, they were pleased. The scars fade after awhile. I do know that they had to watch what they did very carefully for several weeks. As one gal said she let her family treat her like they queen that she always knew that she was meant to be. Hang in there. I know that there will be some of the members that will post and share their experiences w/ you.

Hugs..Deb

Hi Debs and Lori,

Thanks for the positive response.  I am going on the 20th October.   I don't know what to expect during my stay in hospital - how does one get around with all those drains and what sort of clothes to take.

Thanks a million, Boogl

Hi Boogl,
I almost went with the free flap. The only reason I didn't is that I have lymphedema of the arm and chest and was afraid it may have made it worse. I sure would have loved a free tummy tuck!! The Dr I saw is in Spokane, WA and from what I have heard he does really beautiful work! My reg dr saw one of his patients and was amazed at how real her breasts looked.
Anyway, I don't know if anyone on here has had the "free flap" . Some have had the tram flap and maybe the diep flap.
Good luck to you and I hope they come out beautiful!! Let us know, ok?
L&H, Gail

Oh Vickie, I am so sorry this happened to you. My daughter had one mastectomy and tram flap and she lifts stuff all over the place. She has horses and lifts bags of feed and hay......... I really worry about her. I had problems that do sound a little like yours. Several years ago a company put contaminated sutures on the market because their autoclave was broken and no one discovered it. 6.5 Million suture sets went out. There was a recall but only 1.6 Million came back Somehow I managed to be a lucky one that got the bad sutures. My surgeon fought my infection with the help of an infectious disease specialist for nearly a year with antibiotics from oral to injected into my abdominal wall to IV for months, before deciding the infection was just too much. I had all my abdominal muscles removed from hip to hip breast to thighs along with all infected tissue. I now live with a huge hernia that looks like a Buddha fertility god. Like you I can't get up, I can't stand for long nor walk for long. I wear binders 24/7 to hold in the hernia a little, well they support it. You know maybe binders would help you???? Email me a phone number where I can call you and we can discuss this even more. [email protected] I hesitate to write about my mess on here because it was so extraordinary I don't want to frighten others. Hindsight is always better than foresight. Yes, Tram flap is very difficult surgery and like everything else the percentages of problems is very small compared to the successes. Many people died with the contaminated sutures, I feel lucky to be alive. The news of the problem was much too hushed on the news to suit me. Please email me, maybe I can help you more. Hugs, Mary K.

Cindy thanks for straightening up my misconception that diep and free flap were the same. What builds the breast in diep? Can it be used where the the breast is large, say D size? Hugs MK

Hi gma. What builds the breast is the fat that is removed. If a woman has a skin-sparing mastectomy, the breast is opened, the breast tissue is removed and then the fat is taken from the tummy and put inside of the breast envelope, which leaves the breast so normal looking. Of course, the areola and nipple are removed in the majority of the cases, but it is recreated at stage 2. When a woman has had the entire breast removed and has delayed reconstruction, the docs reopen the scar and insert the fat from the abdomen plus an eliptical section of skin that they suture all around, that bridges the area that had been removed. The nipple and areola are once again created at stage two.

The size of a women's new breast, with DIEP, depends on the amount of fat she has available. If a woman wants tripple D breasts and has enough fat to fill the breast envelope, she can have DDD's.

If a woman does not have enought fat on her tummy, the docs can take it from the butt in what is called GAP. Once again, it depends on how much fat you have to give up that will determine the size you can choose for your breast.

Even if a woman has had implants, she can still have DIEP. They actually make beautiful breast, as the skin is all ready to be filled with fat.

I do have a website that caters to DIEP-GAP info. If anyone is anticipating DIEP or GAP reconstruction, feel free to visit and ask questions. It is a new site. Everyone there has either had DIEP or GAP or is on the way to surgery, or is seriously thinking about it. www.nolasociety.org Take care of you.

Cindy