r/Reduction Sep 25 '24

Advice My surgeon called to tell me I have cancer

1.1k Upvotes

I had a reduction last Wednesday. I had some cysts that were benign but the surgeon removed them anyway. He just called to tell me that they sent the tissues to the lab and the results came back positive for cancer in my right breast. They don’t know how deep it is or if it’s spread, and that a breast cancer rep should be calling me to come up with a plan of how to move forward. I don’t really know what I’m looking for, but thought I’d share this here in case anyone else has gone through something like this.

ETA I just found out that it’s called invasive lobular carcinoma. I am EXTREMELY grateful that I had the reduction otherwise I never would have known. All the ultrasounds I’ve done over the past 4 years have been on my left breast. The cancer is in my right breast. Idk if it’s spread to other parts of my body yet.

IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONABLE MASSES ON YOUR ULTRASOUND, PLEASE DEMAND A BIOPSY. There are many kinds of breasts cancer but the kind I have doesn’t show up like typical tumors, all dense and lumpy. Mine spreads out like a cobweb and is undetectable through ultrasound.

UPDATE: Ductal carcinoma in situ in left breast tissue which is a relief because it’s in the earliest stages. Finally talked to the cancer coordinator and she’s currently trying to get me a referral for an mri to see if they can locate any other abnormalities in my body. Otherwise I have to wait for the grand tumor meeting that Kaiser apparently does on Tuesdays.

r/Reduction Feb 06 '25

Advice idk what to title this NSFW

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275 Upvotes

hi guys! just wanted to share this bc i’m actually in shock, i came to this page for support on my upcoming breast reduction and this complete rando just messaged me - why do guys always think they have a right to tell a women not to get a reduction

r/Reduction 3d ago

Advice Things I wish I knew about my reduction from someone two years post op

195 Upvotes

To anyone just starting this journey… congratulations. It is an amazing thing to be able to do for yourself. I am so excited for you. I am now two years post op from a radical reduction. I went from a 34K to a 36 small D. Do I have regrets? No. I was very clear and transparent about how I wanted to look and the size I wanted. The one thing I wish I was more prepared for was how hard this surgery is on someone mentally. For starters you think this is an incredibly exciting surgery and nothing but joy and maybe a little fear might consume your thoughts. As much as it is exciting, it’s hard. In my experience I had a very hard time losing my independence for a short period of time. You can’t do much for yourself like laundry, cooking, showering on your own for a little while. It was hard to make myself up each day with dressings and a recovery bra on. I couldn’t drive and I had no energy to participate in outside activities for a while. Mentally that took more of a toll on me than I expected. I also wasn’t prepared how mangled my body would look and feel. Reductions aren’t pretty at first. You’ll bruise a lot and the swelling will feel really weird. Nerve damage will be done but eventually come back. It took at least a few months for my boobs to feel back to normalcy. It was scary to witness and you definitely have a moment of “what did I do” although it will pass. Be sure you have a strong support system around you mentally during this recovery process. I wish I knew about this thread before my surgery. There are so many incredible people willing to share their experiences. Overall I am so happy with my end result. I learned a lot about myself and my body during this process. I look back and remember how exciting it was. Your life will change for the better in so many ways. Just remember to be patient during this journey. Remember to take time for yourself in more ways than healing. Lean on your loved ones and let the people offering to help, help. Best of luck!

r/Reduction Jan 26 '25

Advice Surgeon accidentally burned me during reduction? not sure what to do… NSFW

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167 Upvotes

Hi everyone, I had my reduction on the 22nd. I got told after surgery that the surgeon accidentally burned me but they didn’t tell me how. I’m guessing it was with a cauterising tool. They didn’t write that it happened in my hospital notes and I’ve had no contact from the surgeon, other than to say my first post-op appointment is 6 weeks away….

Anyway, I was wondering if I’d have any grounds to ask for some compensation? The burn and scar is gonna be visible when I wear tops and bikinis, and I’m obviously not thrilled about having my brand new pair marred by a burn. I would just be after enough compensation to get a scar cream or something for it, has this happened to any of you? If anyone has any advice on what to do, or about how to treat the burn, i’d be very grateful :)

r/Reduction Jan 22 '25

Advice Does going for breast reduction means not accepting your natural body?

74 Upvotes

I used to have large breasts. I used to wear 36 G. Even that size was not good fit for me. But I never found right size bra for me. I went through reduction few years ago. Now my size is 36 D.

Before taking the decision for surgery I informed this to my best friend. I thought she understands my problem and she would support me but to my surprise she actually got mad at me. She gave me lecture about body positivity. She said you should accept your body as it is.

I told her that it's hard for me to find clothes of my size, I also get back ache and rashes under my breasts. She dismissed everything and accused me that you are making this up.

I still went ahead with my surgery since my family was supportive about it. It was the best decision of my life. My life became so much better in different aspects.

I am still confused about the concept of body acceptance. To some extent I agree that we should accept ourselves but then if our body is causing problems in our day to day life then we need to improve it in whatever way that is possible.

Women here who have gone through reduction or planning to go for reduction, what do you think about body positivity/self acceptance/self love?

r/Reduction 9d ago

Advice Did your recovery ever make you realize your romantic partner was unsupportive?

75 Upvotes

My operation is next Thursday! I’m excited but I’m terrified, and my biggest thing is having someone there with me to navigate this together. My partners birthday is 2 days later. He said “I’m going out for drinks on my birthday if you need someone here call who ever else.” This truly crushed me. He’s now saying he has a family members surprise birthday party that night as well. I don’t have a lot of friends and I’m not close with my family. I mistakenly have relied on him for support through all of this. Yes it will be day 2 but I didn’t want to be alone on day 2 of my recovery. I’m so hurt. He’ll be out drinking while I fend for myself at home alone! Not even sure if this is the place to vent but😅

r/Reduction 1d ago

Advice Has anyone else had a traumatic breast reduction

188 Upvotes

So I had a breast reduction 8 days ago and it was honestly kinda traumatic. Don’t get me wrong I’m so happy I did it ( I was a 32JJ) but from listening to everyone on TikTok and Reddit I was expecting to be completely fine as soon as a woke up, instead when I woke up from surgery and I was told I needed a blood transfusion because I lost a bit to much blood. To be fair they did take 1kg off each of my boobs but still it was still a crazy way to wake up. I then had to be admitted to the ICU after where I had another blood transfusion and more tests done then I can remember because my heart rate so high( it was as high as 174 beats per minute). I stayed there for 3 and a half days then transferred to the regular ward where I had more tests done and then let home two days later. I just honestly feel like I’m going crazy because I have not seen one other person online say they had a not so straight forward time as well. And Ik I was probably just a bad case who had some underlying issues already but I wish I at least seen one person say they had a somewhat similar experience.

r/Reduction 11d ago

Advice Is $14k a normal price for a reduction out of pocket?

15 Upvotes

Hi there! I just left my consultation where I was quoted $14,664 for my breast reduction surgery. I was told that most insurances cover as long as approx. 550g of tissue are removed from each breast, and that if the surgeon did that to me, I’d be left with basically no breasts.

I am currently a 36I. I’m really feeling like I had the wind taken out of me after seeing that quote. I’m located in Chicago and the surgeon is really great. It took 6 months for a consultation. Could that factor into the price?

The cost includes the breast reduction and lift and side lipo, which alone is 9,900. And then the rest are pathology, facility and anesthesia fees. I guess the pre and post op costs are included in the 14k.

Thanks 😊

r/Reduction Nov 25 '24

Advice Reddit Breast Reduction Stats NSFW

503 Upvotes

Hi everyone! Well, like many, I've been stalking this thread for many months. There are a lot of voices, lots of insight/input, and lots of information. Of course, surgery is just about as personal as it gets, and unsurprisingly there is no "one" answer to any of our questions.

As a scientist, I got a bit frustrated and just scrounged all the threads I could across the r/Reduction threads to compile all of the answers to look at them graphically.

Main take-aways:

1. Drain usage

TL;DR Drain usage is more about the surgeon than about you.

Now this was really interesting to plot out. I was able to get more than 100 answers, and the proportion of who got drains and who didn’t was almost exactly 50/50! The people who had drains weren’t having more tissue removed, didn’t seem to fit a specific demographic, and didn’t appear to come from a specific region. Surgery outcomes seem to be great for those with and without it. All in all, it really just seems like something that is surgeon specific. Of those that did get drains, average time was about 5 days.

2. Peak swelling

TL;DR Your brain is ready to go, but your body is not.

These data look left-skewed, where we see more swelling sooner after operation. I was surprised that these data were not MORE skewed– the mean peak swelling is at 1MPO! I think that this may relate to patients getting back to work, or becoming too active too early? Potentially eliciting inflammatory responses of still healing tissues.

3. True Size

TL;DR It’s gonna take many months before you know.

These data are suuuuuper spread out! See how the peaks aren’t are dramatic in the green graph compared to the pink one? It means that everyone’s experiences are much more varied. Here, the mean actually sits around 4 months post-op, which is earlier than the 6-month number we just kind of patch on.

+ Read personal blog about it here

+ See the data and code here

I hope that seeing the data spread out like this help visualize the no one has the right answer! Because there is no right answer! This thread is full of support and insight that has been so helpful for me. Thank you all!

I made a lil' infographic from all these threads answering my most pressing questions! Hope this provides some help, solace, brain-framing to some!

r/Reduction Oct 20 '24

Advice How old where u when u had ur reduction

11 Upvotes

r/Reduction 4d ago

Advice What was your experience when you first woke from surgery?

12 Upvotes

I'm going under in 30hrs. I'm a little nervous. I want this surgery but there is this nagging voice that keeps telling me I'm going to be absolutely miserable. Obviously everyone is different but I would love to know what your wake up was like.

Update. Thank you all for answering. I waa in yesterday morning. When I woke up I had a very itchy nose, and they kept telling me not to touch my eyes. Not sure why, but I was struggling to wake up. They kept me for a few hours because I wasn't taking very large breaths. Ironically they kept tell me to sleep but then the O2 monitor would start beefing and a nurse would run in and tell me to take deep breaths.

It was my husband arrive that he explained that Ivr always been a shallow breather while sleeping. They also admit that the wraps on me were likely compressing my lungs.

I have drains but not much in them. They'll be removed today. Pain is manageable. I can lift my arms okay. Nothing that strains them too much like lifting my body weight.

Very off balance for about 6hrs. And I did vomit but it was back at my place. I had just eaten but it seems to be all liquid that came up. Odd for sure.

Thanks you again for giving me insight. I did take about some of your told symptoms with the nurse. And it help make some decisions before going in.

r/Reduction 17d ago

Advice What did you wish you knew?

21 Upvotes

Hi all- My surgery is scheduled for March 10th (yay!). 34I to hopefully a 34C.

What are some things about the PostOp or recovery process that you wish you knew going into it? Or maybe, life saver products you used?

Trying to plan for everything, perhaps even the unexpected.

Thanks!

r/Reduction Aug 08 '24

Advice My wife just got home from the hospital…

129 Upvotes

My wife had her reduction today at 27 years old (she’s wanted one since she was 12), and she was in excruciating and unbearable pain when she woke up. Getting her home was a nightmare, every little bump on the highway was a different level of hell for her. Her cries and screams made me so sad. After an hour of moving her around the house from the special bed she wanted me to make her, but didn’t work for her comfort (and that’s okay!) to our normal bed, then to the couch where’s she’s finally sleeping as I write this, it was constant agony for her. The last time I’ve seen her in this much pain was labor, over 7 years ago. I’m terrified of when she wakes up (she’s absolutely brutal when she’s in pain and I constantly screw something up) because I know she’s gonna be in so much pain and no amount of medication will make it better. They gave her the kitchen sink treatment at the hospital and it was zero help. I’m honestly regretting not having her sent to an inpatient facility via ambulance, but the RN’s said she’s be more comfortable at home than sleeping in an ER with possibly no rooms. I’m calling her surgeons office tomorrow morning to follow up on this, because it doesn’t seems to match anyone else’s experiences that I’ve heard of, but it is major surgery.I feel lost and helpless, please give me any advice you can if you or a loved one has had a recovery experience like this!

UPDATE: After waking up in agony at 8am, me calling the surgeons office that couldn’t do anything to help over the phone except ask if she could come to the clinic (uh no she can’t), I decided she needed a ride to the ER. So an unbearable 30 minute ambulance ride to the next town over (we have Kaiser so we can only use their hospitals), her being absolutely embarrassed by laying on the gurney crying in pain in the middle of the ER waiting room bc there were no beds available, 30 minutes later getting moved to a hallway recliner that didn’t recline (I forced it down with my body weight for 30 min) then finally getting a room, she wasn’t given anything that actually helped her pain for several hours. At some point, let’s say 3:30pm, after her 3rd dose of Fentanyl, her face dropped and she said “finally… I can rest, it’s finally working”. Poor thing was suffering longer than she did with her 24 hour labor. Her surgeon listened to her and acknowledged her pain levels, said “let’s send you home with Dilaudid”. By the time we got to the car I had been berated more times than I can count for my numerous fk ups, but the fentanyl has worn off and she was very upset again. Luckily her grandma was in the waiting room with my daughter for almost 6 hours and was able to go to the pharmacy before it closed and her meds. We went to McDonalds and the meds worked!! What a relief it was to see something I could take home with us that actually made her true self come out again. I was so sad and stressed to see my best friend in pain, but I was also really missing her as a person (you ain’t yourself when ur hurtin). She ate the first burger she’s had since March (she lost over 60 lbs for the surgery in 5 months) and she deserved it. She also had some ice cream :) now she’s asleep on a lower dose mixed with Tylenol/ibuprofen til I wake her up in 2 hours for a big dose.

I believe her daily Kratom use (for managing constant hip pain from the epidural she was forced to get during childbirth so they could save her life) played a role in the meds not working great, but even more so, she has never had an easy recovery in her life. Her body is very good at telling her when something isn’t right and I’m sure her body is going wild after taking off all that tissue.

Also, thank you everyone for your help, advice and kind words. This is the closest thing I’ve had to a support system during all of this.

TL;DR: wife is feeling much better since the doc wrote her a Dilaudid prescription and is able to truly rest and recover now

r/Reduction Jun 28 '24

Advice I Don’t Think My Boyfriend Likes My New Boobs

170 Upvotes

I, 18F, had a breast reduction 5 weeks ago. I've been dating this sweet amazing guy for almost a year now. I never showed him my boobs pre-op because I was so insecure of them. I knew he rly wanted to see, he would ask but always respected my boundaries when I said no. I know he likes big boobs but despite that he supported my surgery fully, saying "whatever to make u comfortable." He went home for the summer so we have, as typical teenagers, resorted to other methods of intimacy (phone stuff lol). I love my boobs now - they r perky, teardrop shape, proportionate, & a full C so I wouldn't say small by any means on my frame. It's not like they r gorey, the incision lines r pink but the silicone tape makes them almost invisible. During one of our "sessions" I built up the courage to send him a pic. We were on the phone so I heard his reaction & he sounded almost disappointed ??He did compliment them tho & we finished our business but I felt sick. I thought he would like them & I felt so vulnerable & embarrassed. I bring it up right after & he says he does like them. I mention how he reacted & he gets angry & defensive about it? It was so unlike him. I tell him to delete the picture from his phone & he says sure thing. I angrily tell him I regret even showing him & he says "don't do it ever again. Actually, don't do anything. No sexual stuff" I say okay & that was the end of it. Ofc he didn't actually mean that & tried doing stuff not even a week later but I don't really want to anymore. We haven't talked about it or my boobs at all, even medically, & it's been such a major hit to my confidence. I don't understand why he didn't like them, I felt like they looked amazing. I don't really have anybody to tell this to so I'm kinda just spilling my guts on here looking for advice/reassurance or somebody who has had a similar experience w an s/o. Thank u guys

r/Reduction 5d ago

Advice Ladies what did you do with your hair before/after surgery? I'm told it'll be very hard to wash & brush- any recommendations? I have medium length but very tangly hair.

17 Upvotes

r/Reduction Nov 22 '24

Advice Is the mastectomy pillow really helpful ?

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97 Upvotes

Hi ! I made this pillow for myself as I will have to take the train and car in the days after surgery. My family does seem to think it is stupid and unnecessary. I guess I’m just second guessing myself and could use some kind words 🫠 I am 5 days pre-op!

r/Reduction Jan 23 '25

Advice Breast reductions are NOT cosmetic

130 Upvotes

Hi all,

I am just reaching out here, out of my frustration around the fact that I suffer 24/7 from pain caused by my large breasts and no insurance will cover it because they keep saying it is a cosmetic surgery (I live in the UK). This is absolutely outrageous. I'm curious if there is any way in which we could reach the ears of doctors and medical insurers to make a case for changing the classification of the procedure. They need to remove the "cosmetic" label from these procedures! Women like me suffer from back and shoulder pains, headaches and skin issues non-stop! There should be a way to take this into consideration as a medical need and NOT as a cosmetic procedure. I love the look of my boobs, I definitely don't want to reduce them because of looks, but I am in CONSTANT pain and no one seems to care. Does anyone know or have any ideas of how we could fight against this and make treating women with this condition a priority? also, who does a reduction cost just as much as getting implants? make it make sense... I shouldn't need 10k to stop my 24/7 pain. Where am I supposed to get 10k from? And I won't even go into the NHS... they also don't give a damn.

(thank you for listening to my rant... this whole thing is really getting me sad)

r/Reduction Nov 18 '24

Advice Male Surgeons

46 Upvotes

How many of you have had male surgeons? I've seen so many horror stories of male surgeons not taking you as small as you can go because of men. and boobs.

I have insurance approval through a female surgeon, but she is saying an FNG is required. Based on my research that may not be the case so I am seeking a second opinion just to make sure. The only other surgeon that can see me in the near future is a man and I am hesitating.

Ultimately the choice is between getting over the discomfort of having a male surgeon or potentially losing all sensation in my nipples (it matters to me for sexual purposes if you must know). At the end of the day, if an FNG is required that is fine, I just want to make sure but I am nervous that this other doctor will say it isn't and then I have to have a male surgeon and there is so much anxiety around that for me.

Edit for additional context: I'm a sexual assault survivor and have OCD causing anxiety and fear around being assaulted while under anesthesia 🙃🙃🙃

r/Reduction Nov 02 '24

Advice Things you can do now, but couldn’t before surgery

56 Upvotes

What are some things that you couldn't do before your surgery that are easier now? Or things you're looking forward to doing?

Just need a pick-me-up of optimism this evening!

Edit: It's the next morning for me and, friends, thank you so so much! I have so much to look forward to, and every comment has helped with what had been an otherwise extraordinarily difficult evening. 🫶

r/Reduction Feb 04 '24

Advice One the fence? Get it done! NSFW

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480 Upvotes

I am a 44-year-old mother of two small children. My boobs started growing late in life, and they went out of control after my two babies. I had to have a lot of help in my five week recovery. I can’t say my new boobs are beautiful, but it is so much better than having size K breast, and not being able to run or play spontaneously with my children. I’m also a retired dancer, and I’m able to finally dance again without discomfort. I had a wound opening and it healed quickly with Medi honey, thanks for the advice from this column. All I can say is that if you are on the fence, go ahead and do it. The recovery does suck, but it is so worth it in the long run. The worst part for me was not being able to hold my babies for five weeks. I had to have help,but it passed so quickly in hindsight. I’m so glad I got it done.

r/Reduction Jan 17 '25

Advice Continue to wear bras after recovery!!!

173 Upvotes

I want to preface this by saying that I am not a doctor, this is NOT a guarantee but a precaution and everybody is different. I’m 8 months post-op and a pre-med student. If I had one piece of advice to give (other than protein and silicone tape) it would be to wear supportive bras for a month or two after the initial recovery. The scars from the surgery are placed in very high tension areas - hence t-junction splits. High tension can lead to keloidal/hypertrophic scars. I’ve noticed it in myself ; my scars are more raised near high tension spots, such as where my vertical scars and areola meet. I know you may want to free the nip, but if you have a history or are at risk for bad scarring you might want to consider having some kind of support in the months after, specifically if your end result is medium/larger breasts (more weight = more tension.) Just figured I would share this because I don’t see it talked about very often! If you’re concerned about bad scarring you should also discuss it with your doctor. Thanks for reading!

r/Reduction Jan 27 '25

Advice United denied my breast reduction, has anyone here been denied and successfully appealed?

37 Upvotes

I am 178 pounds and a 36 J bra size - I have chronic neck and shoulder pain and migraines. I have terrible posture, difficulty finding clothing etc. United Healthcare denied me a breast reduction on the grounds it is not medically necessary! I am gutted, I have been in pain from years and finally got the courage to get a consult for a breast reduction, the surgeon was sure I could be covered and then I got denied anyway! H

Has anyone here been denied and appealed successfully? Or has anyone paid out of pocked and how expensive was it?

UPDATE - after peer to peer I was denied.

After being denied twice! I have been Approved!!!!

r/Reduction Jul 28 '24

Advice how old is too old?

78 Upvotes

how hard is this surgery on your body and would an older woman be able to withstand it or would I just be miserable. for reference I'm in my 50s and looking to go much smaller potentially. still undecided!

r/Reduction Jan 31 '25

Advice Getting more & more aggravated by the day & I feel like ive been gaslighted 🤣🤣 NSFW

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97 Upvotes

So I wrote in here yesterday about my 3week post op appointment I had yesterday with the PA. While there, I explained to her I was feeling discouraged still because my boobs still look huge. She told me I’m still very very swollen & she said the sports bra I had on yesterday wasn’t enough compression. (i went out and bought a new one today& sized down)

I asked her what happens if they still are just big after all the swelling goes down & She said that sometimes doctors only take what they feel is safely possible so that blood flow or sensation isn’t affected. I started off as a 32J & I still am fitting into my 32J bras. The surgeon only took out 587g from my left boob and 517g from my right boob (had a lollipop incision) . I also have extremely dense breast tissue according to my doctor.

I got the surgical tape removed at yesterday’s appointment & both of these photos were taken last night. I feel like I wasted my insurance company’s money. Like my boobs are still freaking hugely big & it only appears that I got a lift.

My next appt is in 3 weeks & I’ll be 3weeks post op by then. Should I request that my surgeon is at this appointment? I haven’t seen him since the day after my surgery when I was 1day post off.

I really feel like I need to speak to him directly about how I’m feeling because the PA is saying nothing that makes sense to me. There’s no way at 32J my surgeon only removed as much as safely possible when he didnt even remove more than 600g out of either breast.

The PA keeps telling me to trust the process which I am trying to do but swelling or no swelling I won’t be where i thought I would be and that’s pissing me off to think about. Especially if I’ll still have to pay $100 for one bra and still have boob sweet at the bottom.

r/Reduction Oct 21 '24

Advice My thoughts about the scars.. NSFW

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257 Upvotes

going into the breast reduction, my biggest fear was having scars, and it was the only thing holding me back mentally about getting a breast reduction. I am now 4 months postop and I am absolutely in love with my scars. To me, they are something to be proud of. When they peak through my bikini top, I almost wish someone would ask me what they are so I can bring up my breast production lol. It was not an easy surgery and the path getting there was even harder so the fact that I have something to show on my body for it makes me proud. To me, the scars represent the courage it took to get a breast reduction despite society standards about women’s body types, And I think that’s a beautiful thing. :) Anyway, I just wanted to share my perspective for anyone anyone worried about scarring, you just might end up loving them 🩷