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52-year-old Mother of 3, DIEP Flap Reconstruction--SO Happy with the Results! - Austin, TX

ORIGINAL POST

Hearing the words “You have breast cancer” is...

bsmith1961
WORTH IT$30,000
Hearing the words “You have breast cancer” is overwhelming, frightening, and a life-changer no matter what stage your cancer is. You are faced with a myriad of decisions about treatment, surgery, scheduling, and how to communicate to family and friends, to name but a few. Your mind is swimming, but first and foremost, you just want the cancer OUT.

My general surgeon’s wife is a good friend of mine, and when I asked him, upon my diagnosis, what he would do if his wife were facing the same decision, he said without hesitation, “I’d do a mastectomy”. Choice #1 made. Realizing that I never wanted to undergo another breast biopsy or face the agonizing wait for the results again, I knew instinctively that I would go for the bilateral. This ended up being one of the best decisions I have ever made, because after surgery the pathology results revealed previously undetected cancer cells in the other breast.

Having known and adored my surgeon for years, when he recommended Dr. Whitfield as my plastic surgeon, I knew I needed not look any further. He spoke of him with great respect and admiration (still does) and I can certainly understand why. I knew from my first appointment that I had made the right choice. He clearly explained both the DIEP and implants procedures in terms my husband and I could understand. I could tell he is passionate about his cancer patients and wants them to have the best possible outcome. I chose the DIEP, not only because I liked the idea of using my own tissue and fat for the reconstruction, but also because I knew that Dr. Whitfield is one of the best surgeons in the country for this procedure. There has not been a moment that I have regretted my decision!

My DIEP surgery took place in November of 2013. I had a bit of a complication—not Dr. Whitfield’s fault; just a blood vessel that initially didn’t want to cooperate—and between the bilateral mastectomy and the DIEP procedure I was on the operating table for about 13 hours! Even so, my husband was amazed at how well I looked when I came out, and I felt good enough to have company the next day. Dr. Whitfield visited each day, usually twice, for the entire 6 days I was in the hospital and was so very kind and reassuring each time. By the end of the week both my husband and I felt as though he was more than my surgeon—he was our friend.

The initial recovery from DIEP flap surgery is no picnic…but within a few weeks I was more or less back to “normal” in my day-to-day activities. A month after my surgery I began physical therapy, which made a huge difference and soon afterwards was given the go ahead to resume my exercise routine. I’ve never had any issues with infection, and I LOVE my flat stomach…I don’t even mind the abdominal scar…it reminds of me of a battle I faced and won!

I have had a few revisions since then and this is what I’ve learned about Dr. Whitfield: He is a perfectionist and an artist. He cares passionately about his patients. He is warm, personable, and fun…there have been times I’ve had to remind myself that I was in his office because I had cancer…what a gift he gives to his patients to be able to help them forget that for even a few minutes! He can generally control what happens in the OR but can’t control how a patient’s body will respond or how a patient behaves during recovery. He is human; he gets understandably frustrated when things don’t go as planned or when a patient doesn’t follow his advice but his bedside manner is exemplary. He is amazingly gifted and my reconstructed body is evidence of that! One of the many blessings that have come from my cancer journey has been the privilege of getting to know him.

My reconstructed breasts look fantastic…far better than I imagined I would look post-cancer! I feel wonderful. I will still have at least one more revision in a few weeks just to tweak things a bit, but I actually don’t mind the surgeries anymore. My recovery each time has gone very well which is due in large part to my fitness level and healthy lifestyle but also because Dr. Whitfield is simply the best! I will be forever grateful to him and his excellent, compassionate staff and have and will continue to recommend him and the DIEP procedure to anyone facing breast cancer.

bsmith1961's provider

Robert Whitfield, MD

Robert Whitfield, MD

Board Certified Plastic Surgeon

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Replies (7)

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August 9, 2014
Congratulations on winning your battle! It's nice to hear you have such an amazing relationship with your doctor. Just curious, how was your cancer detected? Do you feel your breasts are almost back to your original size? Glad you can keep up with your active lifestyle. Thank you so much for sharing your story with us on RealSelf!
August 9, 2014
Thanks Beth, My cancer was found through my annual mammogram. As for my breasts being almost back to their original size...not quite. I didn't have a huge amount of stomach tissue to offer to begin with, and the fat grafting hasn't produced lots of volume, perhaps in part to the amount of exercise I put in each day. For me its been kind of a "two steps forward, one step back" kind of thing... I was hoping to come away from all of this a little bigger than I am and even toyed for awhile with the idea of implants, but both Dr. Whitfield and my general surgeon strongly discouraged me from doing implants on top of a DIEP flap...'too many risks and potential complications. So I am choosing to be content and thankful with what I have been given, and really, they do look great. My husband tells me every day that I look fantastic! I'll post pictures when I get brave enough... I did get the 3D nipple tattoos last month, and that makes a huge difference. I'm normally not much of a cryer, but after getting the tattoos I wept happy tears every time I stood in front of the mirror for nearly a week...it looks so "normal"!
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August 12, 2014
Oh that's great to hear you had the strength and patience to move forward with the nipple procedure. I know many women become rather tired and give up at this point in reconstruction. Congratulations on the final phase! I'm sure there are a few days here and there that you long for larger breasts but in the big picture, I think you're lucky you don't have them along with the lifelong maintenance they require. Glad you're healthy and happy. Yes, please send me a PM when you are feeling brave enough to post pictures! 
August 15, 2014
Beth, I can understand why some women become weary and give up. I actually "hit a wall" at about 6 months post-surgery (and after 2 revisions). My general surgeon encouraged me to let myself just grieve and give my soul time to heal for awhile, so I decided to wait a few months before going ahead with any more surgery. It was a good time to do the tattoos though, and after having them done and resting a bit from the OR, I'm ready to go at it again and see what kind of volume I can get with more fat grafting.
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August 17, 2014
Wow, the advice about taking time to grieve and heal is really quite wise. What a wonderful idea as tough as it may be. Let us know how the tattoos do over time. I recall another member, Cindy588, had hers fade a bit but is still happy overall with her results. Can't wait to hear about your next round of fat transfer. Is that soon?
August 20, 2014
Yeah, the grieving isn't much fun...but its going to happen either way. At some point we have to acknowledge the loss to be able to move forward emotionally. And though I knew this before, I think I needed time to really wrap my mind around the fact that beauty isn't found in a cup size or in a flawless body...it is all about character. I have my next fat transfer surgery on Sept. 5...'will let you know how things go. So far I'm really happy with the tattoos.
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August 25, 2014
You truly have the wisdom of a person who has experienced a lot in life. Crossing my fingers that you 9/5 appointment brings about a bit more fluff for you. Ping me when you're done in case I miss your update!