Bilateral Preventive Mastectomy

[hgrimmett]

Hi I am  32 years old and having a bilateral preventive mastectomy with immediate  DIEP flap reconstruction  in a few weeks. I'm having this becasue my family history is so very strong for this disease. My question to you is what is thelikelihood that while I'm having the surgery and the sentinal nodes are removed for one of them to have cancer cells in it? My mammogram is negative as is my breast MRI. Also they tell me the procedure will last between 8-12 hours and that recovery will take anywhere from 6 tp 12 weeks is the pretty average?
Thanks

[mastectomy]

hi!i'm elizabeth and i'm going to undergo bilateral mastectomy 2 days from now, nov. 16.did you have your surgery done?hope you will be able to respond the soonest.thank you very much.i guess i haven't heared much from people who had the same procedure.thank you very much.

[Fernando Roque, MD]

Hi.  Its really impossible to place an estimate of the likelihood that your sentinel nodes will be positive for cancer cells.  The only way for the doctors to know for sure is to have those sentinel nodes examined by the pathologist.  If you do not have grossly enlarged or hard lymph nodes on physical examination, then this would suggest that the lymph nodes have not been affected by the cancer.  But the only way to know for certain is to have these nodes examined by a pathologist.  

I understand the anxiety you must be going through right now, with the upcoming surgery.  I'm sure you'll pull through.  Good luck!