February 2015 surgery

Hi. I had my excisional biopsy surgery on Friday 2/6. I saw my surgeon in the recovery room and she told me she had to go much deeper than originally planned. I was supposed to be under IV sedation but found out after sx I was put under general anesthesia. Sx took 3.5 hours. I took off the bandages yesterday and shocked to see the top of my right breast with a very big dent, I would say about a quarter of it gone. Stitches in an L shape around my nipple. The left breast has a straight line incision down the side. Right breast is very painful. I am really scared to get results. I did find out that my BRCA is negative but I have to research what that means exactly.

Thank you all for being here. This is the only place I can really open up about my fear.

i awoke to the worst pain since my BMX. Nothing was wrong. I just didn't wake up in the night and take pain meds like I always have. I'm a bit worried because I will be out of pain meds tomorrow. I see my BS tomorrow but he wasn't the one who prescribed the meds. I hate asking. I have never taken all of my pain meds with any surgery. I usually switch to IB after a few days but I've never had a surgery this big and I almost couldn't breathe because the pain was so bad for this am. I feel like a big baby, but it is what it is. Hugs to all.Amy

Had lumpectomy 2/6 with about 20 lymph nodes removed. I was a wreck before, I mean a real wreck, bad constipation, then diarrhea. When I say I did not feel anything I mean it. Surgery took 3.5 hours, and I was in recovery for 2-3 hours. Have plenty of pain meds, which really help, but the soreness under the arms is killing me. Any relief suggestions? God is good all the time!

Hi, Ladies! I am home from my BMX with TE placement... Was in hospital a little over 24 hours after surgery was completed. Feeling some pain but it is pretty well controlled by the Tramadol. Been able to get out of bed to walk some and strip my drains. Hoping the pain subsides in next day or two by quite a bit. Great news... My sentinel nodes showed no sign of cancer. Miss holding my two year old son, but my hubby brings him in every few hours for some time with Mommy. Glad my Mom and hubby are here to help me. Hang in there ladies... We are warriors and will get past these surgeries!!

dancing - yeah mine are ridiculous, they stayed totally lopsided. My PS thought they might even out w the fills (apparently many do - I was just unlucky). But they are only there to create space for the artistry in exchange, so he didn't much mind exactly how they sit. And weirdly i kind of got used to them. Also my PS said no bra unless I wanted one, and once they are filled they def stand up on their own :-) so that was nice. I am looking forward to this swap though after all these months.

All ladies recovering from bmx or SNB - recovery takes some time! Don't be too impatient. I know it's hard, but your body needs time to recover. A wise sister on these boards had to remind me many times that just because you CAN do something doesn't mean you SHOULD. I was up and walking pretty quickly - within 24 hours. But it took weeks before I had energy levels back to normal. And I was T. rex arms for a good 4 weeks. (Bendy straws!). And def keep on top of pain meds. NO reason not to ask for them - of course it hurts!! I used a small pillow under SNB arm for weeks, and never really recovered sensation there. I also started PT exercises as soon as PS approved and recovered full range of arm motion in around 6 weeks if I recall. Happily can clasp my arms diagonally across my back in yoga class again ;-

Drains are the worst. I had 2 from surgery for 2 weeks. HATED them. And when I started chemo I had a TE infection which meant drains again. Really hoping for no drains for exchange..

Hang in there Feb sisters - we've got this!!

Hi NurseShark!

Yes, we are the same day.  Idk if I will be first or second case... I find out Tuesday.  That's my final pre op visit with the surgeon. I have my MRI in hand and looks like maybe CA in the other breast. Doesn't matter because they're going bye-byes. I am having immediate reconstruction with gummie bears and alloderm although I don't know much about either.  I tried to find pics in the forum but having a hard time navigating the site. 

BTW...I am 56. Diagnosed week of my birthday. Four kids, five grand-babies.

My heart is saddened reading posts from the younger women, such as yourself, with babies and young ones running around. How incredibly brave you all are. I simply cannot imagine being in your shoes and I greatly admire your strength! Kudos to ALL of you! 

This site has been an incredible inspiration for me.  You are all my heroes!

Hooray! Surgery is over and I am home on my couch. I have had a positive experience so far with my Umx and TE. I had surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering and cannot say enough about my great surgeons-Dr Van Zee for mastect and Dr McCarthy for ps, and also all the nurses and fellows who checked in on me and gave me such great care.

The timeline was in to the Hosp at 7:15, checked in, ran IV, answered lots of questions. Went into the OR around 8:45. I got very emotional as I laid on the table. The surgeon and a nurse held my hand and gave me reassuring words as I drifted off. I awoke around 12:30 in the recovery room. I had some pain, they gave me an IV med which made me dizzy and naseous, followed by anti nausea meds. It was all a balancing act for a bit but it was figured out. I was moved to a regular (amazing) room by around 2:45/3pm. A big struggle for me honestly was that I am a full time contact lens wearer. Since I had to wear glasses into and after the surgery, my peripheral vision combined with the dizziness from the pain meds was really causing me problems- headache, nausea. Sometimes it was better to just remove my glasses or close my eyes. I even asked people not to stand or move in one corner of the room. I ate clear liquids around 4pm and a regular dinner around 7. Throat was sore from the tube that was there during surgery. I walked around the floor after eating.

Pain has been interesting- I'm much more comfortable than I expected. Pretty mobile, decent range of motion, tightness not too bad. Every now and then there is a stab of harsh pain under my armpit- maybe a drain cord twist? If I breathe through it, it calms quickly. The stretching exercises feel very good.

Sleep in the hospital is often interrupted by vitals checks... So still pretty tired. I was discharged yesterday at noon, spent last night in a hotel and did the 3 hour drive home today. Saw lots of family this afternoon. Now it's quieting down.

Drains are going well with my husband's help. They gave me a surgical bra that holds them well in place and a different one for showering. I'm drinking TONS of water.

I will say that the family seems to be feeling very stressed and it's coming out in various grumpy ways. Personally, I'm happy to have this large step behind me and am eager for my "grow a boob" stage. They all need to chill a bit.

All the best to you as you take your next steps on this journey!

Surgery on Feb. 19. Thank-you all for sharing your surgery experiences. You have filled the wordless terrified void in my brain that occurs whenever I think about surgery with warm, witty, compassionate women's voices and I am so grateful to you.

Good news today! I got my pathology report. There is no cancer present! There were also clear margins. Tomorrow I get my implants fixed but today I am just celebrating.

Congratulations Amy.

My surgery has been posponed until Thursday, February 19th to give the shingles a chance to clear up. I am hoping to get my Herceptin / perjeta infusion before that so I don't have to wait 5 weeks from the last one. Love, Jean

Great news justamy!

I will be bringing candy!

Thanks for the tip! 

Robin

I just joined and this is my first time posting.

I thought that everything would be done and over with after surgery, which was February 3rd.

I was diagnosed with DCIS Grade 3 in two locations in my right breast in October of last year and we scheduled my mastectomy then with expander. The expectation was that everything would be clear and that would be it and I could move on.

I was shocked with the DCIS diagnosis and even more shocked when the surgeon said they found a 3 cm lump during surgery that didn't appear on any mammogram or pre-op test. 2 out of 6 nodes tested positive as well. I had hoped all would be negative and that we were done and over with it all, but now I have my oncologist appointment on Wednesday.

So far, the worse is having to depend on others. I'm 41 and have a 5 year old in kindergarten. My in-laws are in town helping out with everything.

I have my first post-op plastic surgery appointment tomorrow and I really hope that they remove the drainage tubes then. They don't hurt but are soooo uncomfortable.

I guess like everyone here, I'm surprised, shocked and anxious but positive and hopeful to get my treatment started.

Hi jonijess. I hope you are recovering well. I was in a good deal of pain Friday Saturday and Sunday. But I actually slept last night for about 7 hours and woke up this morning with just dull ache. My right breast is much more painful, and I'm bruised so badly on my right side it hurts to look at. Even my ribcage is bruised. I am so afraid of the pathology results. Terrified. I am hoping since the surgeon took out such a large section that she got "it" all. Whatever it is. However, I just have a gut feeling my news will not be good. I am doing my best to be positive and hopeful but I'm also being realistic. She did mention discussing mastectomy etc after results were back so its already in my head that she thinks it might be necessary.

I'm praying and wishing you have good news and a good recovery. We have to be strong, right???? We have no choice. 💜💜💜

@ JustaJennifer

I must have been in the OR at the same time as you on Friday having my exchange. Sloan K is amazing and I think their surgical services can't be beat.

I was out by 1 from the exchange and so far it looks good!

Congrats, Amy!!!!!!

WooHoo! Start planning that well-deserved summer vacation, and enjoy your Valentines day!