DIEP 2014

Wintersocks,

I had my ultrasound today and they checked the 4 bumps that concerned me. 3 of the bumps they said are necrosis. The 4th bump didn't show up on the ultrasound. They could feel the bump and they went over it again and again trying to get an image of it, but nothing, which they said was good. The bump actually moves around a bit, sometimes being closer to the surface, other times feeling a bit deeper. They think its a stitch floating around. I'm scheduled for another US in 6 months.

Hi ladies - it's been ages since I contributed.  I did not have a great stomach recovery - which has lead me to decide on holding off the stage 2 until 2016.  In the meantime I'll be getting 3D tattoos on Wednesday.  The idea of nipples being prominent or flattening out has left me comfortable with my decision.  I'm 57 and have to work on my strength, which took a kicking.  All said - I would do it all again in a heartbeat. I'm very happy with the soft warm breasts.  Next is shopping for larger "over the shoulder boulder holders" !  Good wishes to everyone, Jo Ann

goldie4040, when did you have your phase 2 done? Did your ps say what your options were for making you happy with your nipples? My crop circles where also made small in phase 2, I am hoping over time things will relax and they will blend better, maybe stretch out a little? Best wishes

Happy Belated New Year everyone !

Not sure if you remember me, but I had my diep June 10, following a DCIS diagnosis in APril last year. 

I was active on the board through the process, but upon healing and back to work at a new job, part time in August and full time almost in October, life has been busier again.

I know I am not on  much, although I still do read some, I just wanted to say thanks to all who helped me along when I walked this journey.

It is hard to believe it has been 7 months since surgery and 9 since diagnosis.   It feels like yesterday, and ages ago at the same time.

Things feel pretty good, although numb from nips (or where they were!) to waist, still is weird.  I feel like I've had dental work and am stuck on permafreeze in the middle.  I expect that will always be the case a bit.

I am set to have nipple reconstruction Sept of this year (I am in Ontario, so we wait sometimes for the non-emergency stuff, or I assume that is the reason), which is fine.  Although, I can't wait for crop circles to be gone.  I don't think anything else will need to be done.  I still have really itchy scars at times, but hoping that goes away.

I still have trouble with bras, nothing just seems to fit.  Hoping to have this settle this year.

I do find I still swell periodically, do you find hat at all, or is that a permanent thing?  I have a hard time with pants still, I have no waist it seems now, and things still shift during the day at times.

I still have 30 pounds or so to lose, so I am not sure how much of that all comes into play.

I did have another health scare in the late fall with some eye troubles (double vision, depth perception).  I had a ton of tests, and it was scary, esp. after cancer, you're a little paranoid!  They were looking, I think for something in the brain/pitaury, but it turned out to be related somehow to my laser surgery I had done 20 years ago almost (I think).  It was a lot of maybes, combined with paranioa after cancer, plus google, made me a little nutty.  But it all seems good.  Anyone else freak out with another health crisis occurred?

It is amazing that something that was my identity 6 months ago, and consumed so much of my time and thoughts, daily becomes a more distant memory.  I think that is a bit why I come back less, is that it is not so prevalent in my day to day thoughts,  anyone else find this?

Anyway, couldn't sleep and was thinking of this, and wanted to pop in and say hello and thanks!

Winter - I'm so sorry to hear about Horace! That's such a big loss. I know that pets bring such indescribable comfort through all the sh*tty times, and if I could, I'd send one of my pets over to crawl under the duvet with you.( Too bad none of the cats have their own private plane. Or a passport).

Dila, I had the lumpectomy first then DIEP after chemo, I did not have implants so can't offer any advice there, I have heard others mention it on this thread, however, this thread does not seem to be as active anymore. There is a DIEP 2015 thread that is more active and some folks have moved to that one, if you don't get a response here you might try the 2015 thread. I had three different consults before choosing a ps, one said I needed to lose about 30 lb and the other didn't have a weight requirement. I had my DIEP in mid Sept and my phase 2 two weeks ago. It's a long haul, however, I am glad I did it and it is nice that they are warm and soft to the touch. Good luck with your future procedure and great job on losing 10 lbs and getting closer to your goal.

Sue,

Here's a link https://community.breastcancer.org/forum/44/topic/...

Otherwise, go to Reconstruction Forum, and you can find it there .....

Thank you so much, the decision is really a hard one and it's great this site and wonderful people exist. Thanks Sue

Hello ladies,

I am 8 weeks out now from my first stage DIEP. Had a few bumps in the road due to a positive Dx. Doing better now. Have been working with PT due to lack of ROM on my arm. In regards to stage 2. How long is the recovery period for that? Especially if you have a job that is physically demanding. Trying to figure out timing before my next appointment with the surgeon. Your replies would be greatly appreciated:) Thank you!

Cali, I just had Stage 2 on Friday and like Sassy, I'm up and around with no problems. I just had a right (old/non-cancer) breast lift (whatever -plasty they call it) and fat grafting from my inner thighs to fill in a couple of low patches on the DIEP/left breast. I took a couple of 800 mg. motrin the first day and another today but went to church this morning and walked 2-1/2 miles with a neighbor this afternoon. I'm a little sore in the inner thighs and where the drain is under my arm on the right side but I'm figuring when I go back to the PS this week and he takes the drain out, I'll have no real limitations. So - guess you can take time off from work if you want/need to (depending on how much moving you'll have to do - stretching up pulls a bit) but you should be fine.

Bev

Wintersocks, I had a few small lumps pop up 10 months after my sgap 2 years ago. I noticed that several of the women in my cohort also had lumps at about the same time. I believe that in every case they were oil cysts from necrosis. Mine were verified through MRI but others had biopsies. 5 weeks is considerably sooner but perhaps it's connected to your earlier MX? I read that oil cysts are common for any sort of breast injury. I hope that's all it is - it seems very likely.

LAstar, Thanks for your reply, it's comforting to know that this is common. I will consult Dr Google on 'oil cysts'; It's interesting how some are biopsies and others MRI. Did you leave them and they dispersed without any intervention?

Debiann, Your time frame then is similar to mine, quite soon after surgery. I think if you haven't achieved peace of mind then then it's only right that they do something to help you get to peace. I didn't really feel uncomfortable in leaving it, but I guess he saw the anxious look on my face. It really is only a 10 minute job, and of course we won't have much pain. So maybe it'd worth doing?

It's so nice to come here and have people help when things feel wobbly, my nerves that is!

Hi All, I am still wrestling with the decision of doing the DIEP or cohesive gel implant. Is there anyone on this site that regrets the DIEP Flap surgery and wishes they would have opted for the Implant? Anyone had any abdominal wall hernias?

Thanks

Question about revision surgery. I had a left unilateral stacked diep in December and everything looks great! It was redone because of a failed gap flap on that side, my right non cancer side(gap flap) did well so I have one of each! I am tired of all the surgeries (4 in the last 12 mos), two of them almost 8 hours My foobs need a little tweaking, not much, with symmetry and I don't know if I can do another surgery. Did any of you feel this way?

That 'standards dropping like a rock' comment made me laugh out loud. And, it hit close to home. I had a bilateral DIEP and I was once aiming for perfection but now by boobs, though not a perfect match, and not perfectly formed, are perfect for me.I could go for more fine tuning, but I'm happy with the way I am. In my case, a good bra fixes everything.

Grandmaof2boys - Nothing wrong with changing your game plan. Four surgeries in a year is a lot to deal with. I'm guessing you're at the stage where you don't want anyone to touch you (in a surgical kind of way). So - live with it for a while and see how you feel. Maybe you're done. Or maybe you'll get a second wind and feel the need for more tweaking further down the road.