New on the forum... letters meaning ?

Hi Sol,

It can be overwhelming at the beginning, especially with all the acronyms and technical jargon; but if you have questions (about mastectomy or anything else) and prefer to discuss in french, don't hesitate to PM me - ça me fera plaisir de te répondre

Hi Sol and welcome. After ultrasound my tumor was estimated at 3.6 to 4.5. cm. (After surgery 5cm) I did have a unilateral skin sparing mastectomy (tumor directly under the nipple so it had to go) with direct implants and I don’t regret it. But, I had a team of doctors (most hospitals have a tumor board) and a lot of different tests (FSH, mammoprint , MRI) before deciding on my treatment plan. It is ok to ask for 2nd opinions and to fully understand why a treatment plan is being recommended for your particular situation. If you haven’t spoken to a medical oncologist I would strongly suggest asking for a referral for one before any surgery. They are wonderful at explaining pathology. If you had a core biopsy they would be able to tell you about the ER/PR status,tumor grade, LVI and HER2. They can also order tests like a mammoprints that tests the tumors genetic makeup. All pieces of the puzzle that let you pick the best treatment plan for you. Good luck and keep us posted

Hi Sol- my breast surgeon was almost positive that I would need radiation after my mastectomy. She wasn’t a big fan of me doing DTI (direct to implants -not because of the radiation but because of circulation/blood flow, I wanted over pectoral) she did however recommend having TE (tissue expanders) I wasn’t interested in DIEP reconstruction. I found a wonderful and experienced PS (plastic surgeon) who did over pectoral reconstruction. She was fully aware that there was a very good chance I would need radiation treatment after surgery. She was really well informed on studies done on reconstruction with radiation- at Sloan Kettering (DTI) MD Anderson (TE). If you have the TE put in you would need to wait until a minimum of 6mths after completion of radiation treatments to do your exchange. She also went over what could go wrong after the radiation and how she could fix it. Thankfully my after surgery pathology was really good. My radiology oncologist said I had a 5% chance for local reoccurrence and radiation treatments would not lower that- so no radiation! I’m not saying your situation is the same as mine. I’m just putting it out there in case you want reconstruction at the same time as surgery (breast surgeon goes first and then plastic surgeon follows so they need to coordinate their schedules) and think it can’t be done because of radiation because it can. Second opinion are always good. Try speaking to another PS if it would make you feel better.

Hi Tara-

We want to welcome you to our community, although we're so very sorry for what has brought you here. Do you have any information from your pathology report that might help us direct you to the forum that best fits your needs? We have several, and many members find it helpful to be able to connect with other members with the same diagnosis. Once you have more information about your breast cancer and possible treatments, we can help you find the forums for you!

The Mods