Preparing For Mastectomy
Preparing For Mastectomy
Healing after mastectomy
After a mastectomy, your chest and surrounding tissues are delicate and swollen. A good quality compression bra provides:
- Even, gentle compression to reduce swelling and protect healing tissue.
- Front-closure design for easy wound care, and to make getting dressed easier when your chest is sore and you can't move your arms as much.
- Wide, soft straps and a supportive band that won’t dig in.
- Wire-free construction to avoid pressure on incisions/wounds.
- Breathable, soft fabric for comfort.
- Full-coverage to keep the chest stable when you move around.
Some women also choose to use a soft "first fit" breast form whilst healing. You should always wait until you are fully healed (about 6 to 8 weeks) before moving to a silicone breast form.
Compression Bras
These bras arrive pre-washed and packaged ready to be put on immediately after surgery, in the operating theatre. They should generally be worn day and night for the first 6 to 8 weeks, depending on your surgeon's advice, so you may wish to consider purchasing two (one to wash and one to wear).
Our top recommendations after mastectomy are:
- Amoena Leyla - for light compression around the chest but not over the breast area. This is our top seller for mastectomy patients.
- Amoena Pamela - firmer compression around the chest, with light compression over the breast area. This is a great choice particularly if you are having an immediate reconstruction with LD (latissimus dorsi) flap.
First Fit Prostheses
Some women like to wear a soft breast prosthesis whilst they are healing, inside their surgical bra. The Amoena compression bras include pockets for this purpose.
The Amoena Priform or the Anita Trifirst are perfect for this. The Anita Equilight is also a great choice, as the textured fabric helps hold it in place inside your bra even if it is a non-pocketed bra (such as the Lipoelastic range).
These can be adjusted (by adding or removing stuffing) to fit your cup size.
Scar Management
Covering your scars with a silicone patch or gel helps to improve the appearance of the scar after healing. It helps to prevent the scar becoming raised or thickened.
Silicone patches/sheets/tapes give the best results, but gels may be more convenient, especially in awkward locations. You may need to replace your patches every so often if they lose their adhesiveness.
These should never be applied to an open, healing wound. After the wound has knitted together, you can start using these products. They should be used for at least 12 hours per day, for 3 to 6 months for best results.
