When facing your recovery path, remember: You are not alone. Dr. Tanna recognizes the power of learning from others who have completed their journey before you.
Patient Journeys
We want to connect you with other women who have had breast reconstruction, so you can benefit from shared experiences and outcomes. We recognize how important is to connect with others to learn from them and empower yourself. Dr. Tanna is committed to patient support and advocacy and has an unwavering commitment to each patient. For assistance in your journey to recovery, he and his staff offer outstanding support, compassion, and care throughout the breast reconstruction process.
Kristina
After finding out she carries the BRCA2 gene, Kristina empowered herself by having a preventative double mastectomy. Initially, she was told she was not a good candidate for breast reconstruction with her own tissue. With another provider, she originally underwent implant-based breast reconstruction. Over time, as an active mom, wife and teacher, and someone who enjoys exercise and fitness, the asymmetry, deformity and disproportion she was left with is something Kristina decided she needed to change. This decision led her to meet with Dr. Tanna to discuss her options for either revisionary surgery or other reconstruction options.
Louise
At 43 years old, Louise was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2019. She was healthy before her diagnosis with no family history or indication of breast cancer. With two young children, being a mom, wife and teacher, she required a mastectomy. After meeting with her breast surgeon, she decided to pursue breast reconstruction.
Tracy
Tracy was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018. Initially, she decided on a double mastectomy with implant-based breast reconstruction with another surgeon. As a wife and active mom of three, the pain and animation deformity from her first surgery was unacceptable and affecting her daily life. After much research, Tracy was led from out of town to Dr. Tanna to discuss her options.
Pam
Pam has a strong family history of breast cancer and found out a family member was diagnosed as BRCA2 positive. This led her to obtain gene testing for herself. Her test results came back and she too was diagnosed as BRCA2 positive. Pam is a wife and mother of three very young children. During her consultation with Dr. Tanna all her options were discussed.
Gail
Gail is a mother of two, a wife and a professor with a full plate. In April of 2018 she was diagnosed with breast cancer. After meeting with Dr. Tanna, gathering the education and tools necessary to make the best decision for her, Gail scheduled her double mastectomy with simultaneous DIEP flap breast reconstruction in 2018 at 55 years old.
Kate
Kate is a very busy mother of three children and the wife of a husband who is equally as involved. She has a significant family history of breast cancer and received the news she tested positive for a gene mutation making her susceptible to develop breast cancer. Since she didn’t have breast cancer, she would settle for nothing less than the best. While Kate was a good candidate for flap reconstruction, she didn’t have enough excess body fat to create the breast volume she desired. In 2019, at age 48, Kate had a preventative double mastectomy with hybrid breast reconstruction – meaning flap reconstruction performed at the same time as small implant placement.
Pauline
In 2017, Pauline went for her routine mammogram. She was told something suspicious needed to be watched closely in one of her breasts. Later that year, she was diagnosed with breast cancer. While Pauline lives out of state, her research led her to Dr. Tanna to explore her breast reconstruction options.
During her meeting with Dr. Tanna, Pauline was able to learn about all of her breast reconstruction choices. After considering all of her options, she moved forward with a double mastectomy and implant reconstruction. The implants are in a pre-pectoral position (above the muscle), which has been more comfortable with her activity level as an enthusiastic wife, mother, and grandmother.
Elodie
Elodie is not only a mom; she is a world traveler, chef, and Ironman Triathlete. She also has the BRCA2 gene with a strong family history of breast cancer. Elodie met with Dr. Tanna to discuss her options for breast reconstruction.
After assembling her surgical team, Elodie underwent the country’s first robotic double mastectomy with direct to implant pre-pectoral (above the muscle) breast reconstruction in 2018. The surgery was at her preference of being as minimally invasive as possible. Elodie is more than willing to speak with women who are considering breast reconstruction for preventative purposes or with breast cancer diagnoses to help spread awareness and education.
Maria
Maria is a loving mother and wife who was diagnosed with right breast cancer in 2009. At the time, she decided to have a lumpectomy and radiation therapy. Nine years later in 2018, she was diagnosed with right breast cancer for the second time. Maria was led to Dr. Tanna to learn about her breast reconstruction options. After being thoroughly informed about the possible options for reconstruction, she chose to have a double mastectomy with hybrid breast reconstruction (DIEP Flap with small pre-pectoral implants) at the age of 54.
Kate
Kate was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018 at 53 years old after feeling a lump in her left breast. She has a family history of breast cancer in her grandmother. Having worked in the healthcare field as a nurse for many years, Kate brought a unique and insightful perspective to her journey with Dr. Tanna. She first underwent chemotherapy, then had a bilateral mastectomy with simultaneous bilateral breast reconstruction using silicone breast implants.
Suzette & Maria
Mother and daughter, Maria and Suzette, were both diagnosed with breast cancer within a span of two years with no prior family history of breast cancer. Suzette was diagnosed first with right breast cancer in 2015 at age 39. She had a right mastectomy and chose to forego breast reconstruction. After her mastectomy, she underwent chemotherapy followed by radiation. Upon completion of this treatment, Suzette—with the support of Dr. Tanna, her family, and the rest of her team—decided to have a risk reduction, prophylactic left breast mastectomy and bilateral breast reconstruction with deep inferior epigastric artery perforator flaps (DIEP Flap) in January 2017. Later that year, Suzette’s mother, Maria, was diagnosed with right breast cancer following a routine mammogram. Maria decided to undergo bilateral mastectomies and reconstruction using her own abdominal fat with DIEP Flap reconstruction in October 2017. Maria and Suzette continue to support each other, as they slowly adapt to a new normal.
Anna & Rosemary
Anna and Rosemary are sisters that have had very different breast reconstruction journeys. Anna was diagnosed with left breast cancer in 2016 at the age of 52. She has a strong family history of breast cancer and is BRCA positive. She endured chemotherapy after her diagnosis and subsequently underwent a bilateral mastectomy with DIEP flap reconstruction and radiation therapy. Three years later, Anna’s younger sister Rosemary, who was 50 years old at the time, opted to undergo a risk reduction, prophylactic bilateral mastectomy. While she didn’t have cancer, a strong family history of breast cancer and positive test results for the BRCA gene mutation prompted her to make this decision. After weighing her options with Dr. Tanna, Rosemary chose to have a hybrid breast reconstruction with DIEP Flaps and silicone implants. Although their breast reconstruction journeys differed substantially, these sisters have supported each other every step of the way.
Joanne
Joanne is a mother who is very conscious of her health and wellness, as she focuses on making the right decisions in eating, exercising, and maintaining a balanced life. Joanne visited our team after learning she had Lynch mutation, a gene making her susceptible to breast cancer. Given her history, Joanne underwent a preventative double mastectomy with silicone implant breast reconstruction. She is now feeling whole again and able to move forward, refocused on her healthy wellbeing.
Rosemarie
Rosemarie was first diagnosed with left breast cancer in her late twenties. Thirteen years later, the cancer returned, and she underwent an initial lumpectomy, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. After a third breast cancer diagnosis and a BRCA positive result, Rosemarie came to us to undergo a bilateral mastectomy and DIEP flap breast reconstruction. Rosemarie started feeling whole again after the operation, and she is now ready to live her life to the fullest.
