Lipoma Fun

In case you are wondering, a lipoma is a benign tumor composed of adipose tissue (aka body fat).  According to good 'ol wikipedia, they are the most common form of soft tissue tumor.  They are soft to the touch, usually movable, and are generally painless.  Many lipomas are small, but can enlarge to sizes greater than 6 centimeters.  

Well, this story actually starts about 3 years ago.  I noticed a mass on my right side, near my breast.  I asked my new OB about it at my yearly pap smear, and he brushed it aside like it was no big deal.  He felt the mass, which was pretty small at the time, and said that it was a lipoma and that it wasn't a cause for concern.  If it bothered me, I could have it removed by a general surgeon, but insurance companies wouldn't cover it because it was more of a cosmetic procedure.  So, I decided to do nothing, and let the thing live on.

About 9 months ago, the "thing" seemed to be growing rather rapidly.  It was very visible, and becoming a nuisance because it was right where my bra strap lies.  I was also a little more alarmed because of the rate at which it was growing.  I showed my mom when we were in Utah in April, and of course, she was very concerned and wanted me to ask my doctor about it.  

When I visited with my doctor, the first thing she said to me when she saw it, was "Oh girl, we need to get that removed.", haha.  That's reassuring, right?  She said that in her opinion, it probably was a lipoma, but that there is no way to determine that unless we remove it and send it to pathology.  She referred me to a plastic surgeon, who we went to go see.  He agreed that it was probably a lipoma, but that we definitely needed to remove it to be sure, especially because of the size of the mass.

To make a long story somewhat shorter, I put the surgery off for a few weeks because we were having company in town and I needed to be done nursing Brooke before the procedure.  The surgery was scheduled for August 26th at 8 am.  Kevin gave me a blessing the night before, which was really nice because I was a little nervous that night.  Bev came to stay with Brooke, and Kevin took me to the facility at 6 in the morning for pre-op.  Before we left the house, I had Kevin take a "Before" picture. I am embarrassed because it is NOT a flattering picture, but at least you see the size of the mass.  The boob-looking thing is the mass!!

As they were getting my IV in, and the surgeon was going over the procedure, I questioned the original plan of removing the mass.  He was planning on cutting me along the bottom of my breast and sectioning the mass out from there, but I was not confident that he would get the whole thing.  He  looked at it again, and decided that he would probably need to make a lateral incision along my chest wall to have access to the whole mass.  He assured me that "you will never even see the scar when you wear a bikini."  Haha.  Not a big concern, pal :)  Then I asked him if he normally took a picture of the mass.  He looked at me like I was a freak, but obliged.  I was just curious!  And I am really glad he did, because look at that thing!  So gross, but so interesting to me.  And huge!

 Everything went smoothly, the results from pathology confirmed that it was not cancerous, and I am super happy to be rid of the mass.  I am especially thankful for Bev coming to stay for the rest of the week because I was SO sore.  I figured I would be sore for a day or two, but never imagined how difficult it would be to even get in and out of bed.  I couldn't roll over and it was difficult to sit up due to the strain on my side.  Poor Brooke came down with something the day before the procedure, so she just wanted her mama, but I couldn't even pick her up. Several times, I would go upstairs to rock Brooke, and Bev would have to just place Brooke in my arms and we would try to rest together since I couldn't put her down in her crib once she was asleep :(

I hadn't really told many people about the surgery, but Joanna knew and brought flowers over that afternoon.  Totally put a smile on my face.  I received muffins on my doorstep one morning, and a few visits from friends that I totally appreciated.  Even though I didn't think I needed anything, it was nice to feel so loved :)