Patient Choices

In speaking with my surgeon, he said he could do the mastectomy via the IMF, the inframammary fold, which is the crease below the breast on the bra line. This was not an option given to me by the first surgeon we consulted, and it was not one I had ever heard of. I liked the fact that my scars would be hidden. I then asked him if I could keep my nipples as it did not seem necessary to remove them. He said that he and my plastic surgeon had just returned from a symposium addressing this issue and that I seemed to be a perfect candidate for it. He also added that if he saw anything during surgery that might compromise my outcome, he would then remove the nipples. I also told him that I would like to have a bilat. With two young boys and my mother losing her battle, I did not want to revisit the right side. I was pretty flat-chested after my second son, and felt that if they had to put an implant into the right side to match my new left, scans might miss calcifications growing in that breast. I was relieved when he agreed. I know that mastectomy will not guarantee the avoidance of recurrence, but I felt that in my case, it might help. I had also spoken to a woman who had recently had a single mastectomy, and she mentioned that her only regret was not having both sides done. She explained that she will be lopsided if she gains or loses weight, and as a 45 year old woman, that did not sound appealing. It was comforting to hear another woman support my decision as so many people challenge your decisions and that only makes the process more stressful.

My plastic surgeon explained the different options for reconstruction. I was quite thin when I was diagnosed, and while flap reconstruction was still an option, it did not seem like the right surgery for me. We then discussed implants, and she suggested that for me, silicone would be better than saline. We listened to her reasoning and agreed that silicone would be the best choice. I wanted a natural look and feel and now, thanks to both surgeons, one would hardly know that I had a bilat at all.
In speaking with my surgeon, he said he could do the mastectomy via the IMF, the inframammary fold, which is the crease below the breast on the bra line. This was not an option given to me by the first surgeon we consulted, and it was not one I had ever heard of. I liked the fact that my scars would be hidden. I then asked him if I could keep my nipples as it did not seem necessary to remove them. He said that he and my plastic surgeon had just returned from a symposium addressing this issue and that I seemed to be a perfect candidate for it. He also added that if he saw anything during surgery that might compromise my outcome, he would then remove the nipples. I also told him that I would like to have a bilat. With two young boys and my mother losing her battle, I did not want to revisit the right side. I was pretty flat-chested after my second son, and felt that if they had to put an implant into the right side to match my new left, scans might miss calcifications growing in that breast. I was relieved when he agreed. I know that mastectomy will not guarantee the avoidance of recurrence, but I felt that in my case, it might help. I had also spoken to a woman who had recently had a single mastectomy, and she mentioned that her only regret was not having both sides done. She explained that she will be lopsided if she gains or loses weight, and as a 45 year old woman, that did not sound appealing. It was comforting to hear another woman support my decision as so many people challenge your decisions and that only makes the process more stressful.

My plastic surgeon explained the different options for reconstruction. I was quite thin when I was diagnosed, and while flap reconstruction was still an option, it did not seem like the right surgery for me. We then discussed implants, and she suggested that for me, silicone would be better than saline. We listened to her reasoning and agreed that silicone would be the best choice. I wanted a natural look and feel and now, thanks to both surgeons, one would hardly know that I had a bilat at all.