For women, breast cancer is one of those health threats that grows bigger with age. While cancer is a scary thing to face no matter what your age, breast cancer for older women can bring about a lot of questions and concerns, especially when it comes to breast reconstruction surgery. There are some misconceptions and common wrong assumptions out there about breast reconstruction in general, and this is especially true when talking about breast reconstruction for older women after breast cancer. Here are a few of the most common questions about breast reconstruction surgery and age.
Do most older women forego breast reconstruction after cancer?
According to City of Hope, older women are less likely to have breast reconstruction after breast cancer mastectomy surgery. There are several reasons why women in older age groups may choose to avoid reconstruction, but many of them are unwarranted. For example, a lot of women wrongly believe having implants will make new cancer harder to find if it comes back, which is not true at all.
Is it true you shouldn't get breast reconstruction if you are older?
It is a common misplaced assumption that older women do not make good candidates for breast reconstruction surgery. However, this is actually far from true. It is not age that determines whether or not you would be a good candidate; but rather, your overall health and condition. Of course, older women will likely be a little more at risk for things like slow healing and infection, but with the proper care and good guidance from your surgeon, you should have no big worries about reconstruction.
Why do some women choose to have both breasts removed and reconstructed because of their age?
If you are diagnosed with breast cancer in one breast, and then a mastectomy is performed, you will probably be given the option to go ahead and have a double mastectomy. There are a couple of reasons for this offering and a couple of reasons why a lot of older women accept that offer. For one, your chances of having cancer in the other breast are higher if you have already had cancer in one. Secondly, removing both breasts even though only one is affected prevents issues with trying to find a single prosthetic that matches the size and shape of your other breast. Plus, breast reconstruction on both breasts is more logical than just doing one breast alone.
Share21 May 2018
One day I was playing a game of basketball with a friend, and the friend I was playing ball with tripped and took a hard fall to the ground. He hit his head hard, but he insisted he was okay and just wanted to go home and take a nap. I knew in my heart that he was not thinking clearly, and I didn't feel right letting him go home. I talked him into letting me take him to the hospital, and after some tests, it was determined he had a bad concussion. The doctors told me that if I had let him go home and sleep, things could have taken a turn for the worse. I created this blog to remind everyone to look out for each other after injuries. Not everyone thinks clearly after a head injury, and just being a good friend could save a life.