Dr Carty and his staff are amazing . Truly care about their patients and made my reconstruction process after masectomy so easy to deal with. He is a perfectionist and I am so lucky to be under his care. Not only is he talented in his field but he is so caring and comforting during the whole process.
Hello Realself Sisters, First I want to thank all of you for sharing your experiences and personal journeys. I cannot begin to tell you how much you have meant to me these past few months. Your stories have helped me think through my options and more than anything, you have given me the courage to do what I have been wanting to do for 15 years but have been too insecure and afraid to do--remove my implants and NOT replace them :-) In a nutshell: --51 years old, active and healthy --Breast fed one child --Mastopexy (just cut around the nipple, nothing extensive) and saline implants 20 years ago --Was around a B cup before implants, now I'm a 32 D --Implants have always felt too big for my preferences --They are heavy and they have always hurt and been uncomfortable --They have ripples all over the edges and feel terrible --I lost most of the sensation in my nipples after the BA --I've been wearing minimizer bras ever since getting the implants! Lol! Kind of defeats the purpose :-) I want them out because they are uncomfortable. I cannot go without a good support bra or I have pulling and stretching pain. I want to be rid of the chronic pain they cause. I think I have become acclimated to the pain and just live with it. I have a feeling that I will be surprised by how much pain I have been living with and didn't realize how much it was a part of my life. If I don't have that revelation, that's ok! I still want them out. I have two appointments today--one with Dr. Matthew Carty and Brigham and Women's in Boston and one with Dr. Paul Costas in Concord, MA. I've seen Dr. Carty once already (a few weeks ago) and was planning to have new and smaller implants put in. He said he would do an anchor lift and put in silicone (under the muscle, like my current ones are). Then I started reading your stories about removing them and not replacing them, and I knew that was what I wanted! The only reason I had hesitated with this option was because I was afraid of the outcome, and I didn't know what to expect or if this was a common thing. I truly thought I was the only one to want them out and never replace them. I hadn't even considered Googling the idea. What was I thinking?? Thank heavens for all of you! I know I am not alone. I now know that by doing this I am not giving up on myself, which is what I thought I was doing by wanting to get rid of them. I care about my body and want to be beautiful. Getting these removed isn't moving me away from being beautiful; it's bringing me closer to my real beauty and my real self -- Realself :-) I am probably going to go with Dr. Carty because he is a brilliant surgeon, he was recommended by a good friend, and I trust him. I think Dr. Costas is probably also brilliant, but I don't know anyone who has been to him, and I already feel comfortable with Dr. Carty. I am simply getting another opinion because it's a good idea. I'm excited to hear what they both have to say. I will write about my appointments later today or tomorrow, and I will post more pictures when I can. Thank you all for being the beautiful women you are. xo Updated on 7 Sep 2017: Updated on 7 Sep 2017: So I'm scheduled for implant removal and anchor breast lift on Tuesday (9/11)! I can't wait! I went to both surgeons today and they had vastly different approaches. I decided to go with Dr. Carty because he has extensive experience and expertise in breast reconstruction. Dr. Costas was really wonderful and I think he is probably a good surgeon, but he said that I would likely not have any fullness above the nipple if I did not get new implants. He thought that I would be very unhappy with the result. He said that he would want to put an implant in to ensure that I wouldn't end up with a sloped breast. Dr. Carty offered a very different assessment. Dr. Carty will be removing my old implants (can't wait!) and doing an anchor lift. I told him that I wasn't worried about having small breasts but was more concerned that they would not have any fullness above the nipple and would slope downward. He alleviated my concerns by saying that he would reconstruct the breasts so that there would be breast tissue nicely distributed and that I wouldn't have flatness above the nipple or sloping. He said that I would actually have more projection than I do now because they will be perkier :-) He thinks that I will have a B cup (approx) and that I will have a very nice outcome. He seemed really pleased that I decided to simply have the implants removed without replacing them. Both he and Costas mentioned that I am fairly petite and that a B cup would be a good size for my figure. I actually don't mind if I end up with an A cup. I just want to get these implants out and have my own natural breast tissue again. I'm tired of the pain and heaviness. I'm also tired of having large breasts. My husband has been so supportive. I had been a little worried about how he would react to my decision to go natural and much smaller, but he has been amazing. He thinks it's a great decision :-) I'll post updates along the way. Wish me luck, ladies! xo Updated on 11 Sep 2017: Tomorrow I my implants come out and I have an anchor lift. For the past 4 days I've been so anxious. Some of the anxiety is excitement but I'm also a bit scared of surgery in general and I'm a little worried about pain management. I get really sick on narcotics, and cannot tolerate them without zofran on-board. From what all of you who have been through this already are saying, the pain isn't a bad as the augmentation. I had such a bad experience with my augmentation surgery that it's hard for me to keep things in perspective. When I had my BA, I came out of surgery vomiting and crying in pain. I had never felt pain like that before. It turned out that I was bleeding very badly on both sides. Apparently that sort of bleeding causes a lot of pain. They immediately took my back into surgery because I was losing so much blood that they had to find all of the leaks and stop the blood loss. It was terrible. Anyway, I'm trying to keep my head on straight because worrying will only make things worse. I have a far far better surgeon this time, and he's requiring that I stay overnight in the hospital as a precaution since I bled badly last time. So I'm in good hands with the doctors and nurses at Brigham and Women's Hospital here in Boston. I'm exhausted because I haven't been sleeping the past 4 nights, and I'm running around making sure that everything is set with work, my home is clean, kitchen is stocked with food, all the laundry is done, and my garden is cleaned up and in good shape to be left alone for another month. My husband will be able to help me but I've told him to go back to work on Thur. Unless something unusual comes up, I can't imagine that I won't be able to get through my days after post op day 2 or 3. I thought that I would look at some bras to help cheer me up/reduce my anxiety, so I dropped by the mall today and I managed to buy one bra in size 32A. I have no idea what cup size I'll be, but I wanted to have something on hand to look forward to wearing. I also thought it might be less depressing or less of a shock if the bra is too small rather than buying a 32B and that being too large. I'm not sure what silly psychological games I'm playing with myself, but I think they're just a sign of my emotional state of mind. I really am excited to have small breasts. Really excited. And for all of the reasons all of you have said. They will be more elegant on my slender 5'7 123lb frame. They will feel so much better than my fake bags of saline. They will be all mine. They won't embarrass me like the fake ones do. I can always wear a padded bra for those few times when I might want more fullness. With my fake breasts, I've never been able to reduce them with minimizer bras (and I've tried!). I don't know if I'll sleep tonight. I just know that I'll be glad to put this pre op anxiety behind me and face whatever pain and discomfort I might have. Keeping all of you who are going in to surgery this week or currently recovering in my thoughts. And thanks to all of you who keep posting your experiences along the way. They are so so helpful. As I've said before, I could not have made this decision without all of you. xo Updated on 14 Sep 2017: I've been really wiped out since my surgery on Tuesday so I haven't been able to update. Everything went well with the surgery but in spite of all preparations to keep me from getting sick after anesthesia, I sill had issues with vomiting and nausea. Not terrible but I just don't do well with anesthesia. The oxycodone also made me really sick even though I had reglan and zofran. Bottom line: I'm exhausted and feeling pretty bad. Soooo glad they kept me in the hospital one night. It felt very reassuring to be cared for by professionals. My doctor said that I'm approximately a full A to small B, which sounds perfect. I'll be happy with whatever cup size I have. I'll post pictures tomorrow when I'm feeling better. I took pics yesterday and today. I don't want to scare anyone away from doing this! I am soooo glad I am on the other side of this surgery and thrilled to have the implants out. My breasts are a lovely perky shape but they have months and months of healing before I know their final appearance. The incisions are scary looking but I know that's normal at this point. I'll check in with pics tomorrow. I am thinking of all of you who have been posting and everyone who is on their journey. I am so thankful for all of you. Be well, friends. xo Updated on 15 Sep 2017: I decided that I would post some pics of my breasts. I've been reluctant because they look pretty scary, especially since my doctor did not use steri strips. He used dissolvable stitches on the inside and dermabond on the outside, so the incisions are pretty graphic. I know that they'll heal, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that I will not encounter any complications. I've been really careful about keeping my hands clean, using antibacterial soap, changing my dressings, and not overdoing it with activity. The low grade fever I had for the first two days is gone and my pain is moderate and well-controlled with Tylenol. I haven't experienced any emotional crashes (yet!). I feel really good about my decision and my body already feels lighter. My neck and back don't hurt at all, and they used to bother me constantly. My doctor thinks that I'll be a full A cup once everything has fallen into place, and I'm perfectly happy with this. I'm going to take full advantage of having small boobs! I can't wait to wear light colored tees and sports bras. I'm excited to see how it feels to do PIlates and to run without implants. I wish I had this done years ago. I know the pictures look scary, but I feel great. I'll keep posting my progress because I think I'm going to heal really well and it might be encouraging to others if they see how you can go from where I am today to hopefully a really nice outcome. xoxo Updated on 15 Sep 2017: I'm adding a few more views. My breasts have always been far apart so they are in their natural place on my chest. I would love to have closer set breasts but I'm happy with what I have :-) I have months and months of healing ahead so I'm trying to see past the gory incisions and imagine them healed and happy. xo Updated on 18 Sep 2017: I've continued to improve everyday. I have virtually no pain in my breasts and don't even need Tylenol. My energy levels are pretty low and I'm not sure why I haven't bounced back a little more than this. I just feel like sleeping all the time. Not sure if this is normal, but I'm not overthinking it. Posting a few pics that I managed to take today. They look so much better than just a few days ago :-) xo Updated on 22 Sep 2017: I thought I would update today since I'm feeling so much better than the last update. I had been really run down since the surgery, but I turned the corner yesterday and I feel like a new person. I have my energy back, and I'm feeling as good or better than before my surgery. I went from a 32D to what is probably a 32A, and I cannot believe how much I love having small breasts again. I hated them when I was younger, and like many of you who have told your stories on here, growing up I was teased by boys at school about my "flat" chest. It was so traumatic, and I internalized this really distorted view of my body for years. Ultimately, that led to me getting implants. I hated them almost as soon as I awoke from surgery. They always hurt (even twenty years later), they looked fake, they felt terrible and had ripples all over them, and they destroyed nearly all of my nipple sensation. Why I endured them for over twenty years is a question I'll have to tackle another time. What I know is this: I am so grateful to be rid of those heavy, uncomfortable bags. I am so grateful that, at least at this point, I have healthy breast tissue and I was able to get rid of those implants and have enough breast tissue left to have lovely little perky breasts that are all my own. I have so many friends and family members who have breast cancer and who do not have this choice. For them, implants are their only option if they want to have breasts at all. And I've seen some of their reconstruction and it's beautiful, so thank heavens for implants and reconstruction, but I'm just so glad that I could get rid of mine. I've posted a few pics from today that show my slow but steady improvement. The incision lines look bad but that's just the dermabond glue, some dried blood, some pen markings from the surgeon. Updated on 9 Oct 2017: Tomorrow will mark 4 weeks since my explant and breast lift. I cannot believe how much better I feel. I expected to "return to myself" as I recovered from the surgery and anesthesia. What I didn't expect was the release from chronic breast, neck, and back pain that I had been enduring for several years. I don't know how to explain it, but I don't have the constant awareness of my breasts. Because they are no longer in pain, I don't sense them and feel them. They are just there like any other part of my body. It's incredibly liberating. Even my ribs used to hurt when I would lie on my back at night. That pain is gone. And keep in mind, my implants were large, but not excessively. They were 300cc. Mentally, I feel sharper. My energy levels have exceeded what they've been for the past five or six years. I have suffered from chronic sinusitis for the past few years, and I don't expect that to go away, but who knows. My immune system is bound to be at least somewhat improved given that I am sleeping better and am mentally and emotionally healthier. I posted some updated pics. My body looks like my own again. I think the best way to sum up my feelings is that I feel at peace.
In 2011, I had a mass removed that was precancerous from my right breast. My mother and sister had each had breast cancer twice. I was tempted at that time to do bilateral mastectomy as a preventative measure. I went to see a local plastic surgeon who showed me after pictures that horrified me. I continued with mammograms every 6 months, then got switched to MRI surveillance. I asked to be changed back to mammogram this year. In February, calcifications were seen on both sides. Biopsies revealed DCIS on both sides. I live 100 miles from Boston and researched Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham and Womens Hospital. My breast oncology surgeon was my first visit. Since day 1, I have nothing but positive things to say about the facilities and staff at both places. We decided on mastectomies with immediate reconstruction. I met with Dr. Charles Hergreuter who does implant reconstruction. We determined that I am not an ideal candidate due to body and breast size and a 20 year history of fibromyalgia. Next up was Dr Matthew Carty and his staff. I first met with his PA Tracy who was very impressive with her knowledge and compassion. Last week I met with Dr Carty and could not be any more confident that I have made the right decision and have chosen the right surgeon. He is confident and an expert in his field of micro vascular reconstruction and will be performing DIEP flap on June 3. He was kind, caring, patient and compassionate. He made it clear that I can contact him at anytime. His assistant Laura is pleasant and efficient. All that is left is one pre-op appointment tomorrow and then it is a go. I expect a 10-12 hour surgery, one night in ICU, then 5 additional days in the hospital. I will likely need an additional "tune-up" surgery in 3 months for fat grafting and reshaping. I expect to have an excellent outcome. Mentally, I think I have held it together pretty well, considering the diagnosis was over two months ago and I still haven't had surgery. I was a bit surprised at how important reconstruction was to me at this age. I am recently engaged to a wonderfully supportive man. Thankful for him (and my electric recliner!). Updated on 1 Jul 2015: Well, it's been quite a ride so far. I ended up being in OR approximately 15 hours, guess it took longer to get all the breast tissue out as my breasts were very wide. I developed some blistering on my skin and lesions in my mouth that definitely complicated my hospital course, no one knows what i reacted to, but definitely reacted to something. I had to lay on my back which was the most painful part, the surgical incisions were not that painful at all. I really couldn't eat or drink which likely didn't help my healing. I came home after 6 days, did the 200 mile round trip 2 days later for drain removal from the breasts, what a relief. Developed fungal rash from the irritation from the drain and am just now getting that under control. The sentinel node scars look really good on both sides. While the transferred flap tissue is healing well and took beautifully, the native breast skin has been more of a challenge. I developed blistering similar to what was on my back and now that has turned to black eschar on both sides. The right is healing more quickly, now about half the size of the left. I had the last abdominal drain out last Thursday and this is the first week I have not had to make the 200 mile round trip. Plus, I got to resume caffeine yesterday!!!!! Saw my breast oncology surgeon last week also for the first post op visit with her. It turns out there was a third area of concern, well away from either of the biopsied sites that was found only on post surgical pathology. It helped to know that the mastectomies were the right decision, it would have been missed had I gone the lumpectomy and radiation route. The twice daily dressing changes have been tiring, having to sleep on my back has been a challenge and the hot flashes from stopping HRT have been vicious. I has been a tough time and I have thought many times that I might have been happier if I had just had the mastectomies and not the reconstruction. I may feel differently down the road, but it has been a lot of things to deal with that were not expected. I think my surgeons did an excellent job, the care at Brigham and Womens was wonderful. But, if I did not have a supportive fiance who has been by my side through this whole process, I don't think I would have gotten through it. Am still hoping I will be happy in the end. Updated on 8 Jul 2015: Seeing my surgeon again tomorrow. This has been extremely frustrating and depressing to go through. I do not feel these wounds are healing anywhere near as quickly as they should. Am very curious to see what he has to say tomorrow. Updated on 15 Jul 2015: Hoping these are moving in the right direction. Updated on 30 Jul 2015: Met with the medical oncologist today and got the green light to resume my hormones!!! I could not be happier. I am still having healing issues but at least now I will not be having hot flashes constantly. Updated on 16 Aug 2015: i am finally getting a break from my 200 mile round trips to Boston. My surgeon is on vacation ???? Healing is still very slow. Right side almost healed, down to just a little bigger than a quarter. The left side is finally showing some signs of healing, still about 2" x 3" open wound. My surgeon thinks it looks great. I just wish would heal so I can get in at least one swim before the summer is over! Just keeping it real, it has still been very draining, both physically and emotionally. Updated on 2 Oct 2015: Tomorrow will be 4 months since my surgery. It will be my first day without having to do dressing changes! And, it will be one month prior to my next surgery. On 11/3, I will be having my abdominal incision revised and fat transfer to the low spots on my breasts. I am delaying nipple reconstruction. I might opt for tattooing instead. I will likely need a third surgery early next year to reduce the width and volume of my breasts if they don't come down on their own. They are very heavy, uncomfortable and have many hard lumps. Still not thrilled, my plastic surgeon is urging me to be patient. This journey is not for the faint of heart. Updated on 8 Jul 2016: I haven't posted any updates since October of last year, but my story has been ongoing. I just had my 3rd and 4th surgery on 5/25/16. I was unlucky and developed an umbilical hernia and that had to be fixed and it was time for my second revision of my breasts to get rid of all the scar tissue that resulted from my skin necrosis and to make my breasts more symmetrical. Immediately after this surgery I was so much happier with my results. I had so much "side boob" after the reconstruction I could barely put my arms down to my sides. My breasts were too large for me on both sides, the right was much larger than the left and the area for the nipples was way too big. My surgeon took over 300gm off of the left one and over 600 grams from the right one. I have an increased respect for women who feel the need for breast reduction. I am one of you, even after having mastectomies. I am so much happier in my new size. I am almost ready for nipple reconstruction, it will be my last surgery hopefully. I am moving cross country in 2 weeks but will fly back to Boston to have that final surgery when my body and mind are ready. My surgeon offered to do it prior to my flying out, that I could not do. I have gotten married, gone on a honeymoon, bought a house, sold a house, flown cross country to a wedding and am downsizing to 1/3 of my current living space. Would I like him to do the surgery before I leave? No thanks, think my plate is full. He "wants to finish what he started" and I wouldn't have it any other way. I will forever be grateful to Dr. Carty and his staff for all he has done for me and for his kind and caring manner.
