I did not know that the radiation they gave me would cause my body to create scar tissue that would cause years of pain and suffering and even more surgery. I did not know that when testing for BRCA 20 years later, needing to have my ovaries removed and a double mastectomy would lead me down a path of a dozen surgeries for reconstruction due to massive infections, necrosis, lymphedema, and the heartbreak of finding I had passed this gene on to one of my daughters. I did not know that the side that had the massive radiation field tattooed on my body would be so fragile that they finally needed to use part of my abdomen to create skin for the tissue to heal. I did not know that weight fluctuations would leave one side almost flat compared to the other. 30 years ago, I did not know.
#BRCA
#Cancer #reconstruction #NippleReconstruction