Question for women with Indiana Pouch reconstruction ONLY

bjstubbings

Hello all,

I'm 43 years old with two young children. I'm in the middle of chemo (just three more to go!), and then I'm scheduled for radical cystectomy on August 15th, and I'm choosing to go with the Indiana Pouch (continent cutaneous diversion).

So, here's my question for women who have chosen this procedure: how do you feel about the appearance of your abdomen, now?

I'm a little overweight, and I have a bit of extra tummy skin from my pregnancies. I figured one of these days I might get a tummy tuck, but that will surely be out of the question after my cystectomy. I am trying to get as much information as possible from others who have undergone this procedure, because frankly, I am lobbying my surgeon to have a plastic surgeon scrub-in with him and do the tummy tuck as part of my cystectomy.

Vanity isn't the only or even most important reason for this: when it comes down to it, I want my life back, including my sex life with my husband. I have half my life ahead of me, and I don't want to carry any more reminders than necessary of this little interlude.

There was a time when mastectomy patients didn't get their breasts reconstructed-- now, anyone would be appalled if a surgeon suggested *not* doing reconstruction. So why should breast cancer patients leave surgery looking better than they went in, but not us?

There's no question for me of surviving this-- I'm beating it. I just don't want to give cancer one teeny weeny square inch more real estate on my body than I have to!

Thanks for your feedback!

Betsy