Going to stop reconstruction and have my expanders removed soon

snyder5229

I'm going to stop reconstruction and have my expanders removed soon. I'm wondering if anyone else has done this and if they were able to get flat afterwards. I know this is the right decision for me, but I really hope that I'll be able to be as flat as possible. Thanks!

luckyladyinPA

I have been struggling with the same decision. I hope the ladies here offer good news for you.

glennie19

Here is one thread that may help.

https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/82/topic/823502?page=8#idx_232

Erica3681

If you're still at the expander stage, I'm assuming they haven't been in too long. As I understand it, the longer the expanders (and later, implants) sit against the ribs, compressing them, the more likely a woman's chest is to be a bit concave if they are removed. In your case, hopefully no compression or only a minimal amount has occurred and you will wind up nice and flat without concavity.

Valentine99

I have had expanders since March, and I am having them removed Wednesday. I've had lots of conversation with my PS regarding what I want to look like when it's done. I will be glad to have these things out!

sandance

I am having my expander removed tomorrow, as I have an infection not cleared up with antibiotics. I have black holes with liquid draining from them on my chest tissue! The holes keep getting bigger, and even though tomorrow it will be addressed, this is frightening! Is this supposed to be happening? Doc says I'm ok as long as I have no fever and don't get sick. What the hell?

Moderators

Dear sandance, we wanted to send you a warm welcome to the BC.org community. We're sorry for all you're going through with your expanders... but we're glad that you've found this place to share and learn from others too.

Good luck with surgery tomorrow, please come back to let us know how are you!

Hugs,

The Mods

gardengypsy

I am just starting my chemo, no fills except for one at surgery. Considering having this dang expander removed after chemo. I am not struggling with infection, just the uncomfortable, sometimes painful feeling of having a foreign object in my chest.

Scared to think there could be a concave effect!

Not sure why I even went for it. The sad fact is, I thought most everyone did it! I was rushed to make the decision because I went from diagnosis to surgery very quickly. Things were kind of a blur, ya know?

One thing that pursueded me to go ahead with reconstuction was the fact that I am a high school teacher. I am "on display" all day long.

Are the prostheses comfortable? I would be wearing one for the mastectomy site. How would I match my non--surgical breast??

I would love to hear more from those who did not choose reconstruction or those who had the expander removed.

Wow! What a blessing this discussion board is!

xoxo

gardengypsy

Valentine99

Would love to hear more about your plan.Good luck and let me know about the recovery from this

gardengypsy

Valentine99

How did it go?

What was the plan and how is it working

Hope you are well.

gardengypsy

snuder5529

How did it go?

gardengypsy

snyder5529,

How did it go? Did everything work out as you wanted

SpecialK

garden - both of the members you asked questions of have not signed on to this site in quite some time - I didn't want you to wonder why they did not answer you, in case they don't.  When you see a post from a while ago you can click on the member's name and the screen it takes you to will show the last time that member signed in.

Generally, most people find relief from the pressure and discomfort about the 5-6 week mark.  That is why time off from work is often six weeks for this type of surgery.  It is not unusual not to have a fill within that time period as you are healing internally and externally and for many stretching skin and muscle that soon after surgery is too uncomfortable.  Prosthetics can be comfortable, but if you have a natural breast remaining they will feel different.  For the last 18 months I had a reconstruction on the right and nothing on the left due to loss of an implant after a repair surgery.  I wore a prosthetic during that time and nobody could tell the difference between the two - many ladies on this site have a uni and wear one prosthetic with no problem.

snyder5229

Hi everyone! I had my expander removed December 17th. Everything went well, and while I'm not completely "flat", I am happy with the results. I took two weeks off from work and then went back half days for a couple of weeks. I'm back full time now. I'm adjusting well to the new body I have. The scars don't really bother me too much. It's the weight gain that is messing with my body image now 🙄 Sorry for not checking back. Life gets in the way, and on the days I saw someone had replied I wasn't in the mood to talk about my BC. Thank you for your support

Sundance, I hope it went well for you. I originally had my expanders put in Dec 2014. They had to be taken out a few weeks later because of an infection as well. I had to wait to have them put back in until after chemo and building up more days off that I could take off work. I got them put back in late August. Almost as soon as I had them put back in, I knew that it wasn't the right decision for me. The stress having something in my body that could get damaged or infected again was sending me into a pretty bad depression. Once I got them removed, I not only felt that I'd made the right decision for me, I actually feel more "whole". How weird is that?!

Gardengypsy, I went through the same thing. I was in the mindset that when you get a mastectomy at 40, reconstruction is the obvious choice. My surgical oncologist talked about it like it was a fore gone conclusion. I definitely wasn't even psychologically ready to make that decision. Then, everything happened so fast! I've heard many good things about prosthetics. For me it is easier to go without since I had a bilateral mast. I hope that you can find a solution that you can be happy with. I think I will eventually get prosthetics for filling up my swimsuit tops.

I hope everyone is healing both physically and psychologically. I'll be checking back more consistently this page and to the site in general.

glennie19

gardengypsy: I had a big push for recon from my surgeon, but I was adamant about not wanting to go thru the extra surgeries and possible risks. You go to a shop where there is a certified fitter and she will match a prosthetic to your remaining breast. Pop it in your mastectomy bra with pockets. With clothes on, you cannot tell that you are wearing one.