Hello Clipper, 

A big welcome to Cancer Chat. Your wife is very lucky to have you by her side as you seem to be so caring and to want the very best for her.  I thought I would share with you some information from our website on the mastectomy which I hope you will find useful. You can also find out more about breast reconstruction and the different options that may be available to her. There is a section there on breast reconstruction using implants  and if you have any questions about anything, don't hesitate to get in touch with our lovely nurses on this free number 0808 800 4040 - their line is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. 

As nothing replaces hearing from personal experiences, I hope that other ladies who have had this type of reconstruction will be along shortly to share their story with you. I had a little look on the forum for you and found this recent thread by [@rmscj]‍ about implant reconstruction and feel free to respond to it if you wish. Another conversation which might be of interest to you is [@loukell123]‍'s thread on the mastectomy with implant reconstruction - don't hesitate to respond if there's anything you'd like to comment on that thread too. 

I hope that everything goes well for your wife and that she chooses the best possible reconstruction option for her.

Best wishes, 

Lucie, Cancer Chat Moderator

Hi,

I had a mastectomy and immediate implant reconstruction just over a week ago now. I also had all my lymph nodes taken. The surgery went well and I was in the hospital for 2 days. I'm up and about and even went out for coffee and shopping today. I was given the option of a reduction on my other breast as the implant they gave me will be slightly smaller than my other side but I just didn't want more surgery and have time to think about this for the future. The surgery wasn't as painful as I imagined it would be and to be honest I was expecting the worst but I can't really see much difference when I have clothing on in how I look. I am told the implant will change over time and it will sit naturally higher than my other breast. It will look different out of clothing which is something I am still coming to terms with but am managing. It is a big surgery and can be scary but there's a sense of relief for me now it's done. It's one more step forward in the treatment. 

I am happy to answer any questions you may have.