I am also new to this site. Just joined today. About two months ago I also was diagnosed with breast cancer in my left only, mine is noninvasive and I had three spots, all different kinds from each other. I checked with my insurance (as did the doctor) and I could have a mastectomy with reconstruction, so I chose to do that. If the did lumpectomies, my breast would have been very oddly shaped. The doctor I have is very helpful in providing information to me. Since I have had radiation before for Hodgkins Lymphoma, radiation is a last resort in my case. Have you checked with your insurance yet? This could help with your decisions. I also gave my doctor permission to my other doctors, and they worked together. My mastectomy went well as did the reconstruction, but they missed some of the cancerous tissue and had to go back in today. I found if I separated the logical portion of my problem from the emotional side, I could make decisions and also allow myself a separate time to be upset. Sometimes the emotions get crazy when I'm trying to be logical, so I stop and deal with the emotions as they come. I wish you the best and will pray for you.

Hi,
I am a newbie as well. I was diagnosed in jan with stage 1 her2+ invasive ductal carcinoma in my left breast. It was a tough decision to make but one only I could make. I chose a bi lateral mastectomy.

Some questions and thing to think about are

Will ur insurance pay for both? All insurances pay to what I was told but I'm sure everyone's senario with deductibles etc is different

Would you always worry about the cancer in the other breast? I was petrified and especially at my age about the possibility of the cancer coming back

You will loose sensation of the nipples and feeling in most of your breast? Think about how will affect you ?
For me this wasn't a big concern but everyone is different

If you do both there will be no need for a mammogram.
I am only 35 so I was thankful to never have to do that again

I had calcifications as well so knew I was not going to have a lumpectomy.

I hope this helped some or atleast makes you do some soul searching with the questions to help you make the best decision for you. Please know you are not alone in this and we're all here to offer each other support. I wish you all the best

Hi. I was faces with the same decision. As I'm 31, I decided to go with a double mastectomy because I don't want it coming back, especially since I have a baby. With that being said, it's still a very emotional journey. My surgeons remind me that they aren't going to look great, but at least the cancer will be gone, at least I won't have radiation, at least I'll have one less concern in my life.

I spoke to a radiologist and the plastic surgeon before making my decision, I really wanted to be informed about the ups and downs to each decision.

I have my surgery next month.

No matter what decision you make, it'll be the right one for ypu.

Also, a newbie. I'm currently in recovery from a double mastectomy with flap reconstruction. I feel like my doctors did not adequately educate me on the recovery process or risks. My surgery lasted 16 hours due to complications I didn't even know could happen. Then a few days later I needed the left flap removed because it did not survive. So now I have one reconstructed breast and nothing on the other side. This is particularly hard because the side that didn't survive didn't have any cancer in it. I wanted it removed so that I wouldn't have to worry about cancer coming back. Not that I really care about appearance but I may have made a different decision if I knew all of the risks and how difficult recovery was going to be for 2 mastectomies with reconstructions. So, my best advice is to ask questions and don't let your doctors sprinkle you with positivity glitter. These surgeries may be routine for them but it is a lot to cope with for us.

Hi ~ I chose to have a lumpectomy. My oncology surgeon informed me that the risk is the same for my type of cancer for either a lumpectomy or mastectomy. I am a Stage 1A, with Estrogen positive 10.5, Progestron positive 8.5 and HER-2 negative 8.9. My Oncotyping score is 15% recurrence. My grade was 1 with low recurrence. I had invasive ductal carcinoma. I have been taking Arimidex daily for the past 5 years and due to the recent findings I will continue to take Arimidex for the next 5 years resulting in 10 years on Arimidex. I am obese (200 pounds at 5'3") and pre-diabetes. I chose a lumpectomy as that was the least invasive for me. During the surgery, I had 4 Sentinel lumph nodes removed. Clear margins. The size of my cancer was 1.3 cm. Then I had 7 weeks of daily radiation. The only side effect from radiation was that my cancer breast shrunk considerably over the past 5 years to less than an A bra cup, whereas my right breast is a C cup. Fatigue has also been an issue with me and has never left me. When I asked my oncologist about the different cup sizes, the remark was that radiation will continue to shrink the tissues over time, one of the side effects of radiation, where not common, it does occur. I am 66 years old. Hoping this information helps you make your decision. Good luck !!!