45 Year Old, Mother of Two, 44DD/DDD to Full C - Houston, TX

Last saw PS 2 weeks ago and he was very pleased with the progress of left breast at that point. Tissue is filling in much better than it had been and I'm using less packing gauze which is a good sign. There had been talk of using a wound-vac however on my last visit my PS decided we wouldn't need to right now with the way things are going. I was so happy as I I just really needed to hear some good news for once :). I didn't even require a debridement on my last visit. He left it up to me to decide if I wanted to see him back again in one week or two, as he felt comfortable I was on a good path but wanted me to be comfortable as well. I appreciated that and decided to go back in two weeks..hopefully in that time there would be a significant improvement. Bottom left incision healing up as well, there will be a larger scar underneath but he said we could do a skin graft there as well. One step at a time though. I see the PS again this Thursday and looking forward to another good report! :)

I still can't quite believe that I have lost my nipple and areola on my right breast. The initial debridement was done just about 2 weeks ago, removing the hard black scab and dead fat and tissue that was my right nipple and areola. then I saw my ps again last week and she conservatively debrided the area again leaving a golf ball sized hole in my breast. In other bad news my ps told me that I am not healing at the rate she would expect and its likely due to the poor blood flow that caused this problem with the nipple and the amount of tissue that was removed from that one breast, and also the fact that I am diabetic. She asked if I had ever smoked which I have never but she warned to stay away from even second hand smoke. She prescribed another round of antibiotics (Keflex) as a preventative measure. I'm just happy that there haven't been any infections thus far with these open wounds. R under breast incision that opened up has widened a bit but tissue looking healthy, the doctor says she will do a skin graft on both areas once I heal a bit more. For now it seems that the course of action is to continue wet/dry dressings, take antibiotics 4xdaily for 10 days, keep glucose levels under control, stay away from smoke, and pray for speedier healing so we can move on to the next stage in the process. As for my left breast, there are a few scab spots and some discoloration of the areola, still a bit sore and firm in spots but overall seems to be doing ok. I'm still quite sore and swollen, the right more than the left, and get frequent sharp nerve pains, especially after sleeping, driving or showering...I guess anytime I put any kind of pressure or friction on my breasts it irritates them. In better news, my back and neck pain have been completely alleviated (yayyyy!)...I was hoping that would be the outcome but didn't really expect it but that alone makes it all worth it! I was leery about posting current photos here because I feel they are pretty alarming and gross, but this is my BR journey and I want to document it truthfully. I've read the reviews of others who are dealing with similar troubles and have been truly inspired by their courage and transparency so here goes. Perhaps someone here will be strengthened by my sharing. Praying that everyone is doing well in their recovery :)

I've seen my ps a few times since my last post and on my last visit this past Tuesday she decided to go ahead and do a debridement of the necrotic skin/tissue on the R breast (areola and nipple) which had turned black and hardened. My appt wasn't scheduled until Thurs but she said she had been worried about me since our last visit and decided to call me in early. She did the procedure right there in her office, no anesthesia or numbing medications required as surprisingly she said I shouldnt feel anything and I didn't. However it was rather gross and troubling to hear scissors snipping away at your breast...ewww! It's a fairly deep open wound. But it was over in a matter of minutes. She said to pack the nipple area and bottom R incision with gauze wet with saline and cover with dry dressing. The tissue should begin to granulate and heal up over the next 2-3 weeks, at which time she said we will do a skin graft, then at a later point inevitably do a nipple reconstruction. It's a lot to take in, and of course not the outcome I'd hoped for. My healing is obviously prolonged but this is the hand I've been dealt so I'm trying to remain positive. I will continue with follow ups on a weekly basis for now. L breast doing much better, some skin discoloration after scabbing has peeled but I'm hoping that will resolve or may require some tattooing as well. I am still quite sore and tire extremely easily, especially after moving around a while. Pictures to gross right now to post. Hopefully I'll have better news to post in a few weeks.