Hi Glassyact and welcome to the Cancer Chat forum.

Hopefully some of our members who have had either of these breast cancer surgeries will stop by soon to share their experiences and advice but I just thought I would share some information we have about getting a second opinion in case you wanted to see if you could get another doctor's opinion on your preferred choice of surgery.

You can also look for private care options through websites such as The Private Healthcare Information Network (Phin) and Go Private but if you'd like to discuss your options with one of our cancer nurses, they're available on 0808 800 4040, Monday - Friday between 9a.m - 5p.m. They're very informative and will do all they can to help.

We're sending you all our support Glassyact and wishing you all the best with your surgery.

Kind regards,

Steph, Cancer Chat Moderator

Thank you for your reply, I have spoken to one of your cancer nurses, they said surgeons are not allowed to remove healthy tissues. I have contacted private surgeons all over the country, they all say the must follow the MDT guidelines even if paying privately, it is very frustrating!. Thank you for the links and the information. I am now at a loss as to how to find a surgeon who will perform my desired surgical procedure, I have researched, I totally understand the risks etc. If I were in America I would have the choice, I do find it incredible that I cannot here. So hopefully, there is someone out there who has wanted the same thing and been successful, I would love to hear how and who please?

Hi Glassyact,

A very warm welcomer to the forum.

I am sorry to hear about your predicament and understand your concerns. My mum had a unilateral mastectomy too and was always very mismatched. That was many years ago and things have improved dramatically with reconstruction since then. I had a lumpectomy first time around, but had been diagnosed with pre-cancer in the other breast less than 6 months later and cancer in the original breast within less than a year from my original surgery. This time, my surgeon offered me a double mastectomy and I must confess, that I was relieved to be offered this instead of a single one.

I have seen a number of posts from people who have been offered a single mastectomy, but have been refused because the other breast was healthy. Surgeons have found that removing both breasts in such circumstances, does not improve ones' outcome. I very much doubt that you will find anyone in the UK to perform a double, when there is no medical need for one.

Please keep in touch and let us know how you get on. We are always here for you.

Kind regards,

Jolamine xx

Thank you for replying. Yes, I've research all the statistics and understand and don't disagree with them. I still can't accept this for me, psychologically.