Breast Cancer
Lesson 4: Breast Reconstruction & Prosthesis
Prosthesis
A prosthesis is basically a fake breast. If you choose to use a prosthesis, you will usually come home from the hospital and not be allowed to wear anything but a snug sports bra for a while. The first prosthesis you get is generally a little ball of fluff, in a silky type covering. It fits into the pocket of your bra.
As you heal and progress, you can move up to foam rubber, harder foam and finally a "real" prosthesis. You can buy them online, from a professional fitter in better lingerie boutiques and specifically in mastectomy boutiques. There are even companies which will mold a prosthesis for you and match it exactly to your remaining breast or to photographs of yourself or any model you choose.
The mastectomy bras have pockets. You slip the prosthesis in and usually there are snaps to hold it in place. There are also prosthesis which adhere to your body directly with a skin-safe glue. There are swim prosthesis (the normal ones would be too weighted down in the water and wouldn't dry out properly) and there are bathing suits with mastectomy pockets.
I chose to have a prosthesis for several reasons.
1) I didn't want to have any additional surgery nor be on the operating table longer than absolutely necessary. (To be fair about this, I had had 3 surgeries in 6 weeks: a lumpectomy, wide excision and finally mastectomy)
2) I am rather small chested to start with and I didn't think it would be a major cosmetic change for me.
3) I knew in the back of my head that I could always opt for reconstruction later.
I had my mastectomy on December 8th. On December 18th I had to attend a Christmas party. I wasn't healed enough to even be measured for a prosthesis yet. (The swelling has to be at a minimum, or you won't get a good fit). I rolled up a sock, pinned it in my bra and off I went. OK, it was a little odd, but here I learned my first lesson: people really don't stare at you. If they are used to you, they see you, the person, not you the body.
Second holiday event was a dance for my husband's company. I am a dancing fool and had progressed to a foam rubber prosthesis that I bought online. (Hollow in the back, with a pointy little nipple in the center). Much better shape than my sock. I stuck it into my bra, no pins and it looked decent. During the evening, while doing a wild rendition of "YMCA", it flew out and up over the top of my dress. I caught it, stuck it in my husband's jacket pocket and kept right on dancing! (You have to have a sense of humor during all of this or you will be a basket case).
Finally, 8 weeks post-surgery, my surgeon wrote my prescription for a prosthesis. (NOTE: Legally, insurance companies have to pay for your reconstruction and/or prosthesis and mastectomy bras. All insurance companies are different. Mine pays for 2 bras a year. (Did you ever survive with 2 bras for the entire year? I tried to have my mom sew pockets in bras for me, but we learned that it is an art form. If you don't do it just right, the fabric and your "boob" will not lay right.) My company also pays for 80% of the prosthesis. I chose (was fitted for) a middle-of-the-road model, $450 in 1998.
There are special mastectomy bras with the pockets built right in, but for me, they all looked like "grandmother" bras. OK, so I am approaching that age, but I am rather petite. I like little bras, with a little fiberfill to give me some type of breastline. At the wonderful mastectomy boutique near my home, the specialist fit me, let me pick regular bras and then sewed in the pockets for $10 additional each bra. It was well worth it.
I was like a kid with a new toy! I waltzed around the house in my bra and prosthesis and preened in front of every mirror. I made my daughter (not my sons) look at me in sweaters, tight shirts, etc. Only disadvantage: I never had much cleavage and with a prosthesis, you really have none at all. The front view might be fine, but in a low cut outfit, you can see that behind the "boob" is flat skin.
The social worker at our support group worries that some women will feel less "whole" or feminine without a breast. I agree that I longed for my own breast, but for me, my new synthetic breast does the trick. I went to college in the late 60s - early 70s and was braless then and still run around the house braless. Sometimes, I even venture out to the stores in just a sweatshirt. I swear most people do not even notice. Granted, there wasn't much to notice to begin with, but if you really looked, you would see that there is only one breast.
I am not advocating prosthesis for everyone - you do what you feel comfortable with. And I do mean YOU - not your spouse, your kids, your boss. If you want to have reconstruction and your doctors agree that you are a good candidate, then do it! If you want to try it just the way you come out of surgery, then you may do so. Remember, you can always have reconstruction later if you change your mind.
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