Mischief and Repose, 1895 Oil on Canvas…The J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles
How does one prepare for a surgery like this? The name is intimidating, Diep stands for Deep Inferior Epigastric Perforator artery, which runs through the abdomen. A lot of people think Diep and Tram Flap are the same…not so. The Tram Flap utilizes the muscle where the Diep uses adipose (fat) and the skin along with blood vessels. I am fortunate that my Plastic Surgeon, Dr. Frederick Eko performs this microsurgery.
With that being said my surgery date has been set, it will be on October 24th. I will be hospitalized for three to four days, two of those days will be in ICU. The surgery will be performed at Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage.
My husband and children are all making plans to care for me post surgery, I am blessed to have them available for me. My Diep Flap surgery will be on my left breast. My left breast is the one that had to have the implant removed due to “implant failure caused by irradiated skin”. When the left breast implant was removed on April 4th, all the dead skin was removed as well. Now that is has healed completely you can literally feel my ribs! I tell people that it is like the pictures of the “Radical Mastectomies” from the 1960’s. The right side will also be worked on…a revision is necessary, I have excess skin. That implant will be removed and replaced with a slightly larger one, and some skin will be removed.
The black lines indicate where my current scars are. The scars on the left side will be gone, the new scar will look similar to the picture above. For the right side revision the scare will remain the same. My OR room has been booked for 10 hours. I have a preoperative anesthesia assessment appointment on the 18th, body marking on the 23rd (that’s where the surgeon will draw on my body) and surgery on the 24th.
It has been one long journey….I just want two boobs..or shall I say “foobs” (fake boobs)
Above is one of my favorite pieces from the Getty Museum, the shear fabric, the detail….I could go on and on. I see this picture, and it’s like she is saying “uhh, I just want my reconstruction to end…two boobs…I just want two boobs”
MANY MAHALOS FOR READING MY BLOG
Prayers and well wishes are received with gratitude and love……Pina
My Breast Cancer Journey 