prophilactic mastectomy

Hauntie

I'm a 17+ year survivor. I think this is one of the breast cancer discussion boards I belonged to way back when I was newly diagnosed. I just rejoined. I'd like to hear from anyone who has had a prophilactic mastectomy on their remaining breast. I have pretty much decided to have it done and not necessarily for the reason you might thnk. Developing breast cancer in my remaining breast is something I rarely spend any time thinking about (except during my annual mammogram). When I look down at my chest I often think, "What's wrong with this picture?" The what's wrong with this picture has changed over the years. It is no longer the breast that was removed, it's the one that remains. It just doesn't seem to belong there anymore. Especially when I'm wearing a shirt and not wearing my prosthesis. I see my remaining breast as a growth that looks odd and very out of place. I attempted reconstruction immediately after my mastectomy. It didn't work out. The implant encapcilated and looked and felt like a tennis ball in my chest. I realized what I was looking for was replacement, not reconstruction, and I don't think I would have been satisfied even if the results had been better. I'm way past that now. What I really want is symetry. Symetry with no breasts, 2 protheses, or 2 reconstructed breasts. I don't think it really matters to me. I'm wondering if anyone else feels this way and how you've handled it. I know this is kind of long. If you've gotten this far, thanks for reading it. I look forward to hearing from anyone who has an opinion on this.