March 2018 Surgery Group

Dawn1982

hi all,

I had my nipple sparing bmx and left ald on Friday. I came home from the hospital Saturday evening. In some ways I'm already doing much better - e.g. can reach the faucet to wash my hands, can take deep breaths - but I am still taking some of the oxycodone and flexiril. Ideally I'll wean off the narcotics over the next couple of days. Tylenol has been incredibly helpful. I'm sleeping in a recliner and keeping my activities pretty minimal. Waiting to hear back on the node pathology (had one positive prior to chemo, if still positive I'll need rads)

The most uncomfortable part right now is my armpits - especially where the nodes were taken. Surprisingly, my drains are getting very little fluid - maybe about 5-10ml in the last 16 hours. Should I be concerned about this? It seems too soon (day 4) for such little output. The expanders feel heavy but are tolerable (of course that could be because of the meds!)

Thanks all for being here. I'm 35 and this was the first surgery I'd ever had, so I was pretty nervous about all of it. But honestly it was totally doable, even the anesthesia and the catheter and whatnot.

I wish you all luck on your upcoming surgeries and speedy recoveries.

Kskchap

hi dawn1982,

I’m sure everyone’s drain output is different. I’m day 12 post-op and my two remaining drains are putting out approximately 13-15 ccs each every 12 hours. Are you “stripping” the tubing regularly?

JosieO

Kahnartist,

Best wishes for a successful surgery and a strong recovery. My best to you

JosieO

Dawn1982,

Wishing you continued strength and a good recovery

Di356

Hi everyone,

I am having surgery March 16(1 day before my bday..

Had the lumpectomy already and was dx with IDC. Grade 4.

My doctor is going in where lump has been removed and cleaning the

Area around my lump. I will be having dye first about an hour before my

Surgery. Checking to see if the cancer has moved to my aux nodes.

If they have, chemo. If one, radiation. Has anyone else had this done?

I am new to this group and just wanted alittle info and support.

I won't lie..I am scared. Thanks for all who care & want to help

Anonymous

Hi Di356, Welcome to the boards. Cancer is a scary thing so it's natural to feel the way you are feeling. My advice is to breathe and try to take it one step at a time. I've never heard of Grade 4 (I've heard of Grade 1 to 3), though it may be because they changed how they stage BC in 2018. Your doctors will know a lot more after your next surgery and will guide you through whatever treatment plan is appropriate. Good luck to you!

Dawn1982, congrats on surgery. Glad you're getting a little less sore every day. Be careful taking Tylenol with narcotics, as Tylenol contains acetaminophen, which is one of the ingredients of Percocet/Oxycodone. Everyone is different on the drains. Are you drinking 8 oz every 2 hours when you're awake? That's what I was told to drink after surgery. If so, then I wouldn't worry about it. If not, then try drinking more.

Dawn1982

Thanks all! Wound up visiting my PS yesterday and it was a clot issue in the drain. The primary source of the pain is that apparently the axial lymph dissection was “complete” (they took 12) and therefore according to PS would feel pretty intense.

Everyday that passes I get a bit more optimistic. I'd like to stop taking meds but it's only day 5 today, so I'm just continuing to decrease doses and increase time betweeen.

Kskchap- we were not told to strip previously, but he taught us yesterday and that will be a great help moving forward!

LisaRx- thank you! Definitely staying hydrated. Doc suggested Tylenol, but you’re right it’s in some of the narcotics.

Di356- sorry you are here, but welcome. You will find wonderful support here and a lot of incredible people. I don’t know about the specifics of your situation but I do know it’s okay to be afraid. I’ve been afraid of every step of my journey - diagnostics, getting a port, doing chemo, getting a mastectomy, etc - but I’ve gotten through each one and it has made me a stronger person. Just do one thing at a time and remember you are not alone.

Kahnartist

Thank you Josie O!

Di356...my bday is March 29th...recovering for our bdays should be AWESOME. HAHA!

UofAgirl

Good morning I was on this site back in 2011 and am back again...sigh. Just found yesterday I’m going to need a mastectomy with delayed reconstruction so no nipple sparing and I’m scared to death. I am still in shock it’s back let alone having to go through this surgery. Did any of you have to wait before getting reconstruction done?

Missmariss

Hi Shimmergal

I too am getting a prophylactic BMX with immediate reconstruction with implants April 9. Speedy recovery to all , I don't feel so nervous now that I am reading others post.

Bauer4

I am very happy to have found this community. I have spent the last few days reading posts. I got my dx on 3/6/18. Surgery should be week of 3/26. Will get exact day next week. Still a little unreal, but appreciate the ability to use this community for added support and information.

leb86

Hi there! I am going in for a nipple sparing double mastectomy on Monday afternoon. Just found out today! Any tips on what I should prepare for? Or what kind of clothing/accessories I should bring with me to the hospital? Going shopping tomorrow.

JosieO

Di356,

Understand your fear entirely. I had two rounds of mammograms and ultrasound before biopsies that confirmed my cancer. There were days my hand shook as I tried to pick up things, and I could hardly put one foot in front of the other. But reading the posts here reminded me that i’m not alone. I’m nearing my surgery date, and while I am afraid I know the alternative is far worse. I offer prayers of strength and support to you

JosieO

Hello Bauer4

Yes, agree that some days seem overwhelming, but reading these posts helped me to appreciate that I’m not alone. I offer my prayers for strength and support to you.

Mrsmcg

I joined the March group, but was not added to the list of upcoming surgeries.

I will also be having my surgery on Friday, March 16th. I was diagnosed with IDC, Grade 1 (total score 3/9). I to am scheduled to have the node mapping prior to surgery. I will be having a lumpectomy with bilateral mammoplasty (breast reduction and lift). Also known as oncoplastic. I am getting anxious and just want the surgery to be over with. The Dr. told me that there is only a 20 to 30% chance that I will stay overnight. I am thinking my chances might be greater than that, as I am usually pretty sick post surgery. My procedure is at 2pm. I am told that the PS will take 3 hours, and that the BC has to do her thing too. So I am guessing that will add maybe another 45 mins to an hour. Not sure how long a lumpectomy and SNB takes. Then there are several hours of recovery. So, I likely won't even be ready to go home until about 9pm.

I don't know if it is normally or not, but over the last couple of days I have started to feel some sadness... that after surgery I am not going to be the same person anymore. I know that's not true, just a part of my body will be different, but it still bothers me.

I will be off for 2 weeks, and going back to work 1/2 time on the third week. I can do light duty (desk work), but even my desk work requires a lot of upper body movement, so this really concerns me. I don't want to risk lymphedema, or compromising my recovery by going back to work too soon. My problem is that I have a limited amount of sick leave left, and will have to have weeks of radiation after my incisions have healed.

How do I get my information to display at the bottom of my messages? I added the information to my profile, but it must be something else, as doing that didn't work.

I wish everyone in this group all the best in their recovery or upcoming surgery.

Kahnartist

good luck to all who are having surg today!!! Mine is tomorrow. One more sleep!

Xoxoxox

Kahnartist

Mrsmcg

I totally get your sadness. I was so anxious before my BMX and unsure what would be ahead so I didn’t really think about the after effects. My surg was 10/19/17 and since my recovery I fell into a deep depression.

Now my surg is tomorrow for diep flap reconstruction and I am happy to be moving forward but I feel that sadness that this BC crap will leave us permanent damage (battle scars) and we will forever be changed in so many ways.

I hope you get to go home tomorrow. I stayed one night for my BMX Minot because it was also late in the day. I’ll be staying longer this time.

Anyway, we are surg date sisters! Good luck tomorrow.

Anonymous

leb86, I way overpacked for my BMX w/ immediate reconstruction. I woke up in a surgical bra and slept overnight in my hospital gown, so all I needed in terms of clothes was: underwear, pants and shirt. For the pants, make sure it's something you can step into without bending over too much, such as sweatshirt. For shirt, it helps to have a front-button shirt, although I quickly learned how to put on baggy regular shirts by pulling one arm out and then pulling it over my head.

The other items I'd recommend are: phone, charger, lip balm, and pen (for writing down things). I wasn't there long enough, or lucid enough, to need music or movies or books.

ShimmerGal

Missmariss - I hope it goes smoothly for you! Reading the posts here definitely eased my mind.

leb86 - For clothing, I ordered some wild button down silk shirts on ebay -- the louder the better! I just wanted something to laugh about. I also got some really soft button down PJ tops at target. I have a lanyard and a cheap canvas waist tool belt to try out for drain holding.

There are a few packing lists on the forums here, this is mine: ID, sleep mask & ear plugs, lip balm, button down shirt, pajama pants, baby wipes, hand sanitizer, hand cream, car pillow, glasses case

Mrsmcg - I hear you! & I think it's totally normal. Good luck, and a speedy recovery to you!

Kahnartist - Best wishes tomorrow!!

Linda2119

Mrsmcg - glad you posted! I was going to check in with you to see how you are doing - and can't wait to hear from you when you are on the other side.

My surgery is just like Mrsmcg's - on Tuesday, 3/20. My anxiety is starting to rise - woke up too early this morning. Wish I could fast forward to Wednesday....

My surgery isn't scheduled until 1:30, but I'm doing it in an outpatient clinic so no overnight for me. Hope you can go home tomorrow night, Mrsmcg.

Take care everyone - be strong and postive!

2catsintheyard

Thank you to everyone for your info and support. I was diagnosed in October 2017 (very funny universe for it to be breast cancer awareness month...), have had neo adjutant 6 rounds TCHP and have a bilateral BMX with direct implant scheduled 4/11. I hope you don't mind if I post here in March.

My question is, I have been told to schedule a 'very helpful' mastectomy class through Honor Health. The problem is, it is very inconvenient to me (and far away) to attend. Has anyone else been to a class like this? Is it worth the time and effort, or did you get all the info you needed at the surgery center? Are there any comparable tutorials online?

2catsintheyard

Thank you to everyone for your info and support. I was diagnosed in October 2017 (very funny universe for it to be breast cancer awareness month...), have had neo adjutant 6 rounds TCHP and have a bilateral BMX with direct implant scheduled 4/11. I hope you don't mind if I post here in March.

My question is, I have been told to schedule a 'very helpful' mastectomy class through Honor Health. The problem is, it is very inconvenient to me (and far away) to attend. Has anyone else been to a class like this? Is it worth the time and effort, or did you get all the info you needed at the surgery center? Are there any comparable tutorials online?

AgathaNYC

Good luck to everyone having surgery tomorrow (mrsmcg, di, kahnartist and any others i'm leaving out) !!! I hope it goes smoothly, your recovery isn't too uncomfortable and you get good pathology results.

I saw my breast surgeon on Tuesday to follow up after my lumpectomy. I was so distracted by the good news that I got a pCR (no evidence of cancer after neoadj chemo) that I forgot to ask her about long term scar care. Has anyone discussed putting silicone sheets, tape or gel on your scars to help with healing? What about massaging them? Do we need to wait a specific period of time before we start? Although I've been doing the prescribed stretching exercises the incision site of the SNB is still very uncomfortable.

Mrsmcg - to get your diagnosis and treatment plan to show up at the bottom of your posts go to the menu on the top left of this page and hit "settings" - you need to set your info to "public". that should do the trick.

Mrsmcg

Kahnartist I wish you the best on your upcoming surgery! I hope that this will help you with the depression. We should wear our battle scars proudly.

I don't know what it will feel like to look down at my scarred breasts for the first time. At this time, I don't know how I will feel.

Mrsmcg

Linda2119 I would love to hear from you post surgery. I wish you all the best. You will be in my thoughts. My anxiety is starting to rise also. That is completely normal. I mentioned that to the PS's nurse today, and she said that they would be concerned if I wasn't feeling anxious and nervous. I had my drawing appointment today. I have to be at the hospital at 9:30 tomorrow for the nuclear node mapping.I am not really sure what to expect for this portion of the day. Today my PS said that I had asked about staying overnight. I said I was just wondering what my chances were. He said that if I am still sick a couple of hours post surgery, that the he will check with the recovery nurse and tell them to let me stay. He said that there is an observation area next to the OR, and I can go home Saturday morning. If I am as sick as I normally get post surgery, I would prefer to stay overnight.

Praying that all goes smoothly tomorrow and that I won't experience too much pain.

Anonymous

Mrsmcg, I was nauseated after my surgery (which was quite a bit longer than yours will be), and they gave me Zofran. It worked almost instantaneously. I get motion sick sitting on a porch swing, so I was worried about nausea.

Linda, I also had a BMX with immediate implants. Surgery lasted almost 8 hours. I'm now 16 days past the surgery and recovering very well. The surgery itself was a breeze, thanks to great drugs. The recovery has been slow but steady. I've been able to get up and move around since Day 2. Not being able to reach high things or carry heavy things were my biggest challenges at first. Now my challenge is to get used to the new implants. I'm still very aware of them, and so it's difficult to find a comfortable sleeping position. However, every day I get stronger and less sore. It's a big operation, but quite doable.

Good luck, ladies.

Nikki444

just wondering if anyone else has stiff and painful armpits? The are lumpy and sore

Anonymous

Nikki, yes I have stiff armpits from the surgeon digging around to find my lymph nodes. Pretty normal.

AgathaNYC

Nikki - I'm still sore under my arm 12 days out and I only had 2 sentinel nodes removed. I was told to do the below exercises 5x a day. I know it's better when I do, if I slack off the tightness comes back. Maybe they'll help you:

https://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/patient-educatio...

Mrsmcg

Yesterday's surgery went well. I only ended up up with one drain. My surgery was 3 hours. The PS thought that he had was going to have to do a nipple graft, but thank God he didn't have to do that. Despite having the patch, and 2 doses of anti neasous meds during surgery. I was still pretty sick. I ended up staying on overnight.

The area under my armpits aren't that sore, unless I rest my arm against my SNB side for too long. Most of my discomfort is coming from one portion of the incisions under my unaffected boobs.The hospital added a bit to of additional padding which helped a little bit.

I'm now at home. I have my post op appointment scheduled for Tuesday. So glad that the surgery is behind me. Now I have can start moving forward.

Thanks to everyone for your helpful advice.

Colleen