Category: Finding A Surgeon

Primary Care; Radiologist; Breast Surgeon; Oncologist; Plastic Surgeon specializing in mircrosurgery

Length of Hospital Stay : DIEP flap Breast Reconstruction

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Length of Hospital Stay: DIEP flap Breast Reconstruction The length of  your hospital stay after DIEP flap breast reconstruction will likely be four to five days. My surgery was on a Monday morning, I was in my room by 10 pm that evening, and I left the hospital on Saturday morning. Although my surgeon came in to ask if I was ready to leave on Friday, I stayed one extra day only because I didn’t feel strong enough to go back to the vacation rental. He gave me the option to stay another night based on how I was feeling. Remember, I flew in from out-of-town, 800 miles out of town! I had to be 100% positive in my mind that going back to a foreign environment, the vacation rental, was going to be conducive to my healing process for the week I would be there following my release from Continue Reading →

Postoperative DIEP flap Recovery

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Postoperative DIEP flap Recovery Postoperative DIEP flap recovery, pain management, and progress with movement and activity, are some of the most common questions, concerns, and fears women ask me about. I wanted to share my photos in this blog to give women visual of progress I made during my recover from DIEP flap surgery. This was my recovery time and everyone will be different to some degree. I had very few “hiccups” in my recovery and it went as expected. The most difficult part for me was not pain, which was controlled quite well. My challenge came in lying still for five days. But as I frequently tell interested candidates, you have just been re-sculpted by an artist, your plastic surgeon. Treat your piece of art, your newly built breasts, with respect and nurture it back to health with patience and care. All good art work takes time! My First Continue Reading →

Body Image After Mastectomy

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Body Image After a Mastectomy Body image after mastectomy is difficult for many women. I went through this myself after a bilateral double mastectomy. It is my own definition but I define women who live with mastectomies, “hidden amputees”. No one sees you are missing body parts when you wear prosthesis. No one feels what you feel each time you see a reflection of yourself in the mirror or try to pick out something to make you look feminine or sexy when you want to step out for a social event. Nor does anyone truly understand the desire to just magically want the clock to turn back before you had to have your breasts removed due to cancer; no one except you. What was your personal choice? How did a mastectomy change your body image and how have you dealt with it? Did you decide to have reconstruction, wear prosthesis, Continue Reading →

History of DIEP Flap Breast Reconstruction

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  The history of DIEP flap breast reconstruction, as with most medicine and surgery, has certainly evolved over the years. Patient recovery and healing, post operative outcomes and efficacy of the surgery has likely played a significant part in that evolution. The first attempts at flap reconstruction date back as far the 1800s. The advantage of using the deep inferior epigastric perforators (DIEP) as a means of breast reconstruction was primarily promoted by two surgeons in the mid 1990’s. Dr. Phillip Blondeel of Belgium and Dr. Robert Allen of the U.S. were the two surgeons who convinced their fellow plastic surgeons of the advantages of DIEP flap over TRAM flap as it did not use the rectus abdominis muscles thereby giving patients a more desirable outcome by not sacrificing their “sit-up” muscle. Many Must Travel to Find a Qualified Micro-Surgeon DIEP flap surgery is complex and involved.  It takes specialized Continue Reading →

Scar Healing: Post DIEP flap Surgery

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Scar Healing: Post DIEP flap Surgery Scars, scar healing, and scar therapy  after breast reconstruction surgery is a frequent topic of discussion on DiepCJourney support group page. I can share with you what I have learned about these topics after phase 1 & 2 of my DIEP flap surgeries. What Forms the Scar? You may have heard of collagen. Collagen is a structural protein occurring in our bodies. Collagen goes to work and is produced by your body, in simplest form, after skin is disrupted through a surgical incision. It repairs and heals the wound because of its fibrous, connective properties. It is what forms the scar when your body goes through its natural healing process. Healing is Individual but Maintaining Health is Important! We are all unique and individual when it comes to healing. Your skin color, genetics, and overall health are important factors in the individual outcomes and Continue Reading →

Exercise After Breast Reconstruction Surgery

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Going in DIEP! Exercise after breast reconstruction surgery is a tricky game. You must clear it with your plastic surgeon. Your incisions must be completely healed so that you do not compromise the healing process. One question I asked my PS, Dr. Minas Chrysopoulo of PRMA at my pre-op appointment before the final phase of my reconstruction was when I could get back to swimming. We have a pool in our backyard and I felt it would be good rehab as a post-surgical exercise. His answer, “When you are ready and when the wounds are all healed”. New Sensations and Healing I’ve been working up to this moment today. I emailed the nurse at my plastic surgeon’s office a couple of weeks ago and told her I was feeling some interesting and strange new sensations in my breasts. I couldn’t really put the feelings into words but I think she Continue Reading →

DIEPflap Breast Reconstruction: Aesthetic Questions to Ask Your Plastic Surgeon

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DIEPflap Breast Reconstruction: Aesthetic Questions to Ask Your Plastic Surgeon DIEPflap breast reconstruction & aesthetic questions to ask your plastic surgeon involves more than  you may have given much thought to.  You have had a mastectomy due to breast cancer. You have tested positive for the BRCA gene and are facing the decision to have a prophylactic bilateral mastectomy to significantly decrease your chances of getting breast cancer. Perhaps you are even going in for a consult to repair damage done at another practice and are looking for better results.  Now you’re researching and thinking about breast reconstruction options. You found a board certified plastic surgeon with great skill and a high rate of success. The consult appointment has been set up. You write down as many questions as you can and hope beyond hope you will be given the time to have all of them answered.  Your main concern Continue Reading →

DIEP Flap Surgery: Day one, Phase one

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Check-in It was still dark outside the morning we left for phase one of my DIEP flap breast reconstruction surgery. We were told to be at the hospital at 6 a.m. Monday morning following Thanksgiving weekend had to be a good day for surgery. My surgeon had time to be with his family, enjoy a feast and be all rested up. It was a new week and a brand new month, December 1. We arrived at the hospital and signed all the paperwork for check in. The wait wasn’t too long but the room we waited in was the typical sterile, hospital environment, fluorescent lighting with CNN on the TV. They had coffee available but nothing for me, thank you very much. I had been on complete fasting since midnight. They took us up to another smaller and quieter waiting area where all patients were checked in and waiting to Continue Reading →

Bilateral Prophylactic Mastectomy

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  Bilateral Prophylactic Mastectomy ~ Is it Right for You? When I read an article about BPM posted on Facebook by my reconstruction surgeon I knew immediately what the letters stood for and so do those in the BRCA and cancer community. Out of pure curiosity I searched on the internet the “meaning of BPM” without adding “medical” to the search. You get some interesting as well as hilarious results: British Prime Minister, Beam Position Monitor, Business Performance Management, Blood Pressure Monitor, Beats per Minute and my favorite, Butt Pumping Music! The Angelina Effect Bilateral prophylactic mastectomy became a popular news topic after Angelina Jolie shared that she reduced her risk by nearly 90% of ever getting breast cancer because of choosing a BPM. She tested positive for the BRCA1 gene mutation and her mother died of ovarian cancer. I wrote a previous blog on this and completely understand why Continue Reading →

Genetic Testing

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Is Genetic Testing A Scary Road to Travel? It is one of the hot topics in the medical world, “Genetic Testing”. A recent report from NBC Nightly News reports on the the risks and benefits of genetic testing.  Why do individuals choose to do it? What are the benefits and risks? What is the cost? Is it covered by insurance? Does it risk an individual’s chances of further insurance coverage in the future if they test positive? My Own Personal Experience I can only speak from my personal experience and reasons to explore genetic testing for myself. There are certain criterion that determines if you are a candidate who will likely benefit from genetic testing. I fit two of those conditions. One, I had breast cancer at a fairly young age, 47. Two, I had a recurrence of the original cancer I had at 47 but more importantly a newly Continue Reading →