BRCA1 & BRCA2 – Direct to Implant, prophylactic 7.0 – Empowered Mastectomy

My journey started in 2019 when I learned I carried a BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation. I was hesitant at first but ultimately decided to have a prophylactic mastectomy. A week after surgery my life was flipped upside down. A tumor was found and I had triple negative breast cancer. My tumor was too small to see on the scans I had just before my mastectomy. I started chemotherapy and ended up getting cellulitis and needed my left implant removed.

Breast after mastectomy before expander is placed

The photo was taken the morning before my tissue expander was being placed. It was almost 9 months after my mastectomy and 6 months since my explant. My relationship with my body has been complicated since my mastectomy, but on the morning of my surgery I looked at my body with a new appreciation. It went to war. I have had 8 surgeries since I learned I carried the mutations. Two of those surgeries were emergency surgeries to save my life. My body may not look the way I thought it would, but she is powerful, strong, courageous, and resilient.