Thread by @kegill

It’s the first day of Pinktober and I managed not to think about it.

Here’s a post from last year about mastectomies and scars.

#breastcancer @double_whammied

life.wiredpen.com/2019/12/how-i-…

“Although almost half of mastectomies do not involve reconstruction, it turns out that too many of these surgeries do not leave the woman “flat.” It’s highly unlikely that the scars will be “flat” if the patient isn’t savvy enough to use that word pre-op. I didn’t know.”

There are lots of explanations for visually butchered bodies.

One is that breast surgeons often leave some excess skin “in case you change your mind.” There are a non-trivial number of surgeons who refuse to perform bilateral mastectomies, per stories in breast cancer groups.

The skill required to remove cancerous tissue is not the same required to create aesthetically pleasing scars.

Plastic surgeons are routinely in the operating room when reconstruction is on the menu, NOT when a woman does not want reconstruction.
This. Needs. To. Change.

I consider this post a public service and I hope that Google/Bing algorithms will serve it up when women who are newly diagnosed with breast cancer are trying to learn about mastectomies. I wish I had read something like this.