BRCA positive, prophylactic surgeries, 2much family cancer

joelleburnette

I don't have breast cancer (at least, not yet), but my sister has had it twice and my father's mother and sister both died from bc. A few years ago, after my sister's second diagnosis, it was time to get tested. And after months of waiting and trying not to worry, I found out I tested positive for the BRCA1 genetic mutation. 

Suddenly, based on my family history, I was given more than a 90 percent chance of getting breast cancer, and a 1-in-3 chance of getting ovarian cancer. All I could think about was how this was going to impact my children's lives. All my mom could think about was making sure I cut everything off my body that served as a potential cancer factory.

After seeing the problems with my sister's implants and expanders (popped implants, painful expander infections, mangled skin, etc.), I knew implants weren't the right choice for me. Instead, I chose TRAM Flap reconstruction, but I couldn't get clear answers on the recovery.  "Everyone is different." That was the typical, frustrating answer.

I assumed other women wondered about recovery, so I wrote about my experience, first in my blog (joeysjournal.com) and then with an expanded story in my book, Cancer Time Bomb, selling on Amazon. I included TRAM patient tips so other women would know how to be better prepared before, during and after their hospital stay.

I truly hope my story helps other women get through this horrible process. I can't begin to compare my experience to my sister's, but the process and my decisions were intensely emotional. It's never easy to tell the docs to cut off parts of your body...especially when apparently they are healthy and there's a small chance they'll remain that way.

Thanks for reading.

Joelle