51 Y/o Mother of 5 at Peak of Professional Career Diagnosed with Breast Cancer - Boston, MA

A healthy, energetic , Nonsmoker, fit 51 y/o mother of Five children at the peak of my career ...I had no time to be diagnosed with breast cancer and all the details that went along with it. I was counseled to have a bilateral mastectomy at my local hospital and I elected for simulataneous reconstruction beginning with expanded in Feb 2012. Within 6 weeks, while shopping for groceries, I felt gelatinous fluid on my clothing Over my right breast. Yep! My implant was leaking. Without any systemic signs of illness, I was seen the next morning and had office surgical procedure to evaluate and rectify. I now was on antibiotics and had a deflated implant . Two weeks later I started Radiation . My implant was rippled and I had significant assymetry. An attempt to expand failed since the implant flipped so the port was no longer accessible. I took a trip to Boston to see my oncologist and underwent chemo. Upon completion I was referred to Dr Sam Lin to discuss my options. He suggested a autologous DEIP flap, albeit a large extensive surgery and challenging recovery....it was natural and he believed I was a strong, healthy candidate. With a rigorous family and work schedule, we planned for June 2013 to have the surgery. The thought of being in Sugery all day was concerning and a five day recovery in the hospital and a prolonged recovery at home was indeed a cramp in my lifestyle. Honestly, the Nursing Staff at the Beth Israel was phenomenal and The entire process although rough went very well. I felt so confident in the expertise, knowledge exhibited by Dr Lin. Throughout the process he was caring, compassionate, sincere and truly an artist in his vision and expert fine tuning ability to revise my failed initial reconstruction. He was very reassuring and had the most sincere, sweet disposition and bed side manner. He showed great concern for not just me but my husband and each one of my five children. We were a unit and he was cognizant of the need for me to be healthy again for all of us. ( a plus to have my baby fat removed yet stay a part of me... Just repositioned, so I could still feel good about myself , despite my cancer and the complications prior). Frequent visits enabled Dr Lin to make appropriate management decisions and a little more fine tuning. I have the utmost respect and confidence in his abilities. He brings a human component to his care, providing appropriate information and no question is too much. My husband and I are both physicians, who work with many physicians and have had exposure to other healthcare facilities. Dr Lin ranks in the top 1 % in our experience for his tremendous meticulous skill and all around professionalism. He is an outstanding individual who really cares about the patient and their family. I trust and believe in him and feel very fortunate to be under his care. I without hesitation recommend him for their care. He is one of the best . Boston and the Beth Israel are very fortunate to have him as an educator and a provider. Special.