July 2020 Surgery Group

dysonsphere, thank you for starting this thread, and good luck with surgery!

The Mods

Dyson, thanks for starting the July group! My BMX is scheduled for July 14th. I finished my Taxol on 5/29...technically I should be having my surgery sooner, but both my breast surgeon and I decided that we would like to enjoy the 4th of July holiday first! I want to get in the lake at least one time this summer.

No one has told me yet if my husband can be with me pre and post surgery. I wil be sure to ask at my next pre-op. My PS did say however that my surgery would be out patient and I would go home the same day. I really question that...shouldn't a double amputation with tissue expander placement warrant at least an overnight hospital stay?! On the June surgery boards some are saying they won't be staying overnight due to Covid. Still seems brutal to me!

Good luck Nana, I will be thinking of you on Monday!

I finish my last chemo July 2nd and have a final MRI two weeks later so around the 17h or so. My oncologist said we’re all afraid of it growing If we wait any longer so surgery should be ASAP after that so I’m hoping surgery will be July 20-27 something around there but we don’t have A n exact date yet. I’ll be having a lumpectomy.

Hello - I am told I will have my surgery mid-July. I was supposed to start with chemo, but after a whole circus it seems I will now start with the (more standard) mastectomy first. How I wish I had a specific date.

“I really question that...shouldn't a double amputation with tissue expander placement warrant at least an overnight hospital stay?!“

I am actually surprised when I hear anyone that does do overnight for these. Where I am they want to minimize risks even outside COVID-19 times and typically once you are ambulatory (ie can get up and use bathroom on your own) they release you. The BMX does not affect joints etc so no physio neededand the less time you spend in hospital around other exposures the better.

So it’s standard here for that to be a day surgery. My PBMX with direct to implant reconstruction - back in 2014 - was a day surgery, as were both my swaps. I believe I went in for surgery at around 7:30 am and was on way home (2 hour car ride!) by 2 or 3 pm. Had two drains. It was actually nice to be at home that same day.

Best wishes on your surgery and recovery.

I have my first pre-op July 1. It’s really starting to make this all real. I’m having one last vakay with my family via a baseball tournament with my son. The family that we are staying with has a son who beat leukemia. Helps put things in perspective as I cannot even begin to imagine having a child with cancer, but I still know that my journey is unique. I am hopeful yet still scared out of my mind. I hope y’all are here with me.

Hello Ladies,

This is my first post. I was diagnosed with Stage 1 ++- on June 17 after my regular mammogram showed an abnormality on my right breast. After an ultrasound and a biopsy , I was told my tumor is less than one centimeter.

My current game plan is to have a lumpectomy on July 8th and three weeks of radiation four to six weeks later. Followed by Tamoxifen for 5 years.

I am 41 and have a four year old son. I do noy currently feel "sick" and my husband and I are in the middle.of building our dream home. My diagnosis has taken us by extreme surprise.

I am thankful to have found this group and look forward to learning and sharing with eveyone.

Hello everyone, I have met with my surgeon last week and she is only doing a single masectomy with full lymph node removal and yet I wanted a bilateral masectomy with no reconstruction. However, I cannot get her to agree yet... any thoughts or comments. It seems many people have a choice, I am waiting to discuss this with her again so I do have a choice.

Single Masectomy and full lymph node removal 7/14/20

Welcome, Swishy888-

We certainly understand where you're coming from! As Dysonsphere mentioned, this is one of the most personal decisions, and often one of the hardest. Has your doctor explained her reasoning behind believing that surgery to be your best option? Depending on your diagnosis and subsequent treatment plan, there could be a greater benefit of following your surgeon's recommendations. But ultimately, this is your choice, and we hope that you're able to talk to your surgeon and weigh the pros and cons of both procedures before deciding on the one that's right for you.

The Mods

Hello, I am wishing you really good luck on your surgery. I had a lumpectomy in April and a bilateral mastectomy on July 1.

I am in southern California where the pandemic appears to be raging again.

I did not have anyone to visit me, but I did see that the hospital I was in allowed a visitor to be in the initial reception area.

There was a very young teen and she really needed her mother, it appeared, but the mother had to leave after she got registered and checked in for surgery, in the main waiting room for that process.

When I got the lumpectomy, the surgery was maybe 1.5 hours and I went right home with a medical service driver (done in northern California).

I was not there long enough to have visitors.

For the bilateral mastectomy, I did not see visitors on the hospital floor where I stayed overnight (done in southern California).

I will say that my personal opinion, just based on my own experience, is that if anyone is staying overnight, if you are allowed anyone there, it would be a good thing, from the patient perspective.

The hospital I was in had apparently laid off and/or furloughed nurses to save money with the pandemic.

There was ONE nurse running around with her hair on fire on the floor that I spent the night on.

I had to set my bed alarm off by going to the bathroom myself since no one responded for so long to the call button.

At one point, the surgeon bound me up in an ace bandage and it was too tight and I swelled up a bit and could not breathe almost, and an orderly showed up but no nurse, until I started yelling really loudly.

From this experience, if you are allowed to have anyone check in, or visit, it would truly be a helpful and good thing for overnight hospital stays at least.

Hi Ladies,

I had my right breast lumpectomy and sentinel lymphnode removal this past Wed and my surgeon said it went well. We should have the pathology results back next week to be sure it did not spread to the lymphnodes.

I am sore and have stinging from the two incision sites. I am keeping a sports bra on to mitigate some of the pain.

Thankfully I was able to have my husband with me during preop and postop for the surgery. It helped me calm down a lot. I got to the hospital at 7:30am and was on the way home by 1:00pm.

PrimaDawna,

I have always found my incisions to be the most painful part. Like big paper cuts. Even today my belly and breasts feel fine (even though look swollen and bruised though Arnica is helping) but my two incision areas are sore and swollen. One appears to have bled a bit but I won’t take the bandage of until it’s been 24 hours - it’s not soaked through or anything. The worst is usually over within a few days but I remember after my initial surgery one drain incision irritated me and was painful for weeks after drain was out.

Sometimes for me pressure helps. Also ask your doctor when you can apply ointment (usually once closed/healed) I use a natural one from Green Goo but keeping it hydrated and using something that gives a little topical pain relief helps a lot!

Wishing you the best for your results

It's hard when it is something new. I can understand the nerves. It's a big surgery so I am sure will be quite sore but you will be great - I know you will be!

I am doing well today (2 days post-op). I was pretty sore yesterday but managed to stay on top of my pain meds and so feeling much better today. My breasts are fine, can't feel them at all as usual but my abdomen is definitely tender and I could not bend well yesterday at all. Wa surprised to actually find it was most tender near my pubic bone. Today is much better and I can move better for sure. Still careful when need to lower down but can walk and do most things without issue.

Had a shower today at 48 hours post-op so that was nice and felt invigorating. Took all the dressings off and I have some swelling and bruising for sure so will see how it goes. Many bruises already calming down (I am using topical Arnica as well). I can see where he “overfilled" the fat a bit in my divots and ripples so will see how it takes. I heard if you are thinner it tends to take better as more stubborn so here is hoping. Also got to take a good look yesterday at my tummy as there were only two bandages - he did a good job I think. Took from my belly - both above and below belly button and “love handles". Looks to be evenly sculpted. It's a little weird though seeing my midsection - I am relatively thin anyway but I can definitely see a change in my shape. I imagine I am still swollen a bit too so will just have to wait and see but I am happy so far. He did not require me to wear compression but I found it much more comfortable to do so and more supportive so have been doing that since first night. I have some more mesh like shape wear that are cooler to wear but give me compression on my midsection.

Moving helps too. I just did some slow and easy going indoor walking in my basement today and also took my cat for a little walk outside. But
Iam very sleepy and can nearly fall asleep anytime I sit down but not for very long. Did not sleep great first night but did pretty well last night.

HOWEVER, I have had several bouts of hiccups. I rarely get hiccups but had 7-8 bouts yesterday and 4-5 today so far. I know it can happen after general anaesthesia or abdominal surgery but it's my first time having this in 5 surgeries (including one abdominal). They just come on randomly. I of course have read how some people end up with them being chronic (after two days they are considered to be so) so am hoping they just go away on own soon...there are meds and such you can take but I don't want more meds to take and so on. Annoying!

Go back for post-op visit on 20th when they also will remove the lipo stitches manually. Just two lipo incisions (small, near my hip bones) and I counted 4 on my breasts that have steristrips