Breast Reconstruction-Part 1

After much debate about weather or not I should do breast reconstruction, I went for it.
 
I decided to do the Profunda Artery Perforator Flap (PAP)

This is an exciting alternative to abdominal, back, or buttock tissue flap for reconstruction of a natural looking and soft, shapely breast.  The surgery was done by taking tissue and veins from the back of my legs, right under the but crease.  That tissue was then shaped to mimic a mastectomy specimen, providing excellent contour and projection.  The procedure uses the arterial perforator that run through or beside the abductor magnums muscle to supply blood to the fat and skin in the upper inner and posterior thigh.  No muscle is harvested, and the scars in not visible from the front, so it is usually well-concealed. 

A large part of doing the surgery is to promote self esteem and heeling.  So it was important to me that I not be left with another large scar to look at on regular basis.  With the PAP the scar is on my backside and unless I want to look at it, I'll never know it is there. 

As a young athletic woman I wanted to have full range of movement for the quality of my life.  And another huge benefit of the PAP for me was that no muscle was removed.  Unlike the Latissimus Dorsi, TUG, and the DIEP Flap proceedures. 

Since I received radiation, implants weren't a great option.  And they would need to be replaced every 10 years.  I didn't like the sound of that, just needed this whole thing to be done with. 

The surgery itself was really long, like 10-12 hours long.  And overall it was more painful than I anticipated.  Mostly because the large incisions on the back of my legs, and I had to sit on them constantly.  Still not able to sleep on side or tummy, so as not to mess up the newly reconstructed breasts.  So I am still pretty uncomfortable.