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Shirley · 03-05-2015, 05:25 PM

Donna,

I had a DEIP recon last fall, followed by a revision surgery to smooth out the scars and even things up 3 weeks ago. The DIEP surgery was about 10 months after radiation. Depending on the plastic surgeon, they will have you wait 6-12 months for surgery following rads. I healed up fine after the DEIP, but this most recent revision has been a different story. My skin after the revision got really red and has started to peel (though not as bad as what happened during radiation--ugh), and my surgeon said it could take a month to heal and for the redness to improve due to the radiation. He put me on antibiotics for a week. But it was still worth it to me because he was able to dramatically reduce the scarring (both on the breast and on the tummy scar) so in the long run I think I’ll be happier with it.

I think there is an excellent chance that a plastic surgeon could do something about your scarring. Just know that it might take longer to heal than someone without radiated skin. I encourage you to check it out.

Shirley

03-05-2015, 05:25 PM	#4
Shirley Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2013 Location: Lakewood, WA Posts: 56	Re: scar tissue Donna, I had a DEIP recon last fall, followed by a revision surgery to smooth out the scars and even things up 3 weeks ago. The DIEP surgery was about 10 months after radiation. Depending on the plastic surgeon, they will have you wait 6-12 months for surgery following rads. I healed up fine after the DEIP, but this most recent revision has been a different story. My skin after the revision got really red and has started to peel (though not as bad as what happened during radiation--ugh), and my surgeon said it could take a month to heal and for the redness to improve due to the radiation. He put me on antibiotics for a week. But it was still worth it to me because he was able to dramatically reduce the scarring (both on the breast and on the tummy scar) so in the long run I think I’ll be happier with it. I think there is an excellent chance that a plastic surgeon could do something about your scarring. Just know that it might take longer to heal than someone without radiated skin. I encourage you to check it out. Shirley __________________ Age 54 at dx (April '13) Stage 2b, grade 3 ER+ PR+ HER+, 9 cm tumor one breast and <0.5 cm in sentinal node BRCA1 and 2 negative Neoadjuvant TCH chemo started 5-15-13 (4 rounds, 3 weeks apart) Unilateral Mx w/expander 8-22-13 (right side) 5/5 nodes Neg clear margins but close. Tumor at removal down to 2.2 cm. Radiation 6 wks starting 10-17-13. Herceptin every 3 weeks until 4-23-14 DIEP/Mastopexy 10-8-14, U of WA