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Preparing for surgery

© Bobbi Jones

Preparing for surgery to have the cancer removed is not an easy task. Not only are you dealing with the emotions, now you have to face losing "part of your womanhood." I plan on writing about the procedures more in depth following this article. I, personally, thought it was important to mention "how to prepare" before I tell you "what they do."

First things first: the types of surgery that are performed to remove breast cancer. Some procedures are followed by what is called adjuvant therapy. Adjuvant therapy is the combination of surgery and/or chemotherapy and/or radiation. Below is a list of the most common procedures performed to remove the tumor/cancer.

TYPES OF SURGERY:

Lumpectomy - This procedure only removes the cancerous lump (tumor).

Simple Mastectomy - removal of the whole breast.

Partial Mastectomy - removes the tumor, some of the breast tissue around it and the lining over the chest muscles below the tumor.

Modified Radical Mastectomy - removes the breast, some or all of the lymph nodes and lining over the chest muscles.

Axillary Dissection - removal of some or all lymph nodes located under the armpit.

QUESTIONS FOR YOUR DOCTOR:

Before you have one of the above mentioned procedures I have listed some questions that I recommend and other cancer organizations suggest you ask your doctor to prepare yourself.

 Where will my scar(s) be and what will they look like?

 How long will it take for me to recover?

 Will I have special exercises to perform?

 If any pain is expected will you be prescribing medication?

 Should I consider reconstruction?

 If I consider reconstruction, when will I need to notify you?

ACTUAL PREPARATION:

It usually turns out that no matter how much you prepare yourself physically and emotionally for some form or surgery, you never do enough. You either forget something or think it will be easier to handle than it is, etc. I thought I had all bases covered from chores to kids taken care of. I am a very organized person and everybody else used to come before me. After actually experiencing this, I realize that even though I did a pretty good job of taking care of little details of the house and kids, I forgot to take care of me, to prepare myself.

You have to realize that no matter what the surgery is, if you are under anesthesia it is dangerous. Do not freak out when you have to sign those forms at the hospital prior to surgery. I am not trying to scare you, only prepare you. I was afraid to hear this kind of information myself. You have a life-threatening disease.

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