Surgery on NHS????

[saints1234]

Firstly thanks for taking time to read my post.

I am a 39 year old man who's had issues ever since i was a teenager, though just felt i had to get on with it.

My condition as stopped me doing so many things and to be honest if i think about the things i haven't done i would say it's stopped me living life to the full in a big way.

After 25 years of living with it i decided enough was enough and i went to see my G.P. who referred me to breast specialist, who in turn as now referred me to a plastic surgeon. I just want to know if i have got any chance of getting it sorted on the NHS?

I get annoyed when people say to me for cosmetic reasons because it's so much more than that it's about being happy and content in yourself.

Thanks for taking time to read my post.   

[improving]

I think there are people on the board who have had an NHS procedure, might be worth looking through the pages or doing a search.

If i remember correctly the NHS sometimes only perform liposuction only and don't remove the gland, which often doesn't give the best results. I'd recommend Mr Levick at the Priory in Birmingham, or Mr Karadis in London for the op because they have consistent excellent results, but obviously it will cost privately.

Good luck though, i'm sure someone will come along with more knowledge than me on the subject of NHS soon.

[saints1234]

Thanks for the reply.

I have been told already it will only be done if they feel it's effecting me in a negative way and the surgery would have a positive effect. I take everything with a pinch of salt due to hearing some negative stuff about the NHS.
Though i am just going to hope for the best because i have lived with this for to long!!!!

[saints1234]

Hi,
Well i went to see the plastic surgeon last week and he seemed a very nice fella. However i am not sure if he's being totally honest and would like peoples views who have been to get consultations done whether on NHS or Private.

My issue is i seem to have quite a well developed upper chest " due to gym " though i have quite a lot of excess fat around the nipple and it droops also the nipple becomes puffy. The surgeon took a look at them and can defo see the problem but he feels it's due to the muscle being developed and which in turn is making the fat push down. Therefore i was just wondering does this sound like a brush off or fact?

To be fair he want's me to have an MRI and have pictures taken at the hospital so not completely brushing me off because he can see how much it affects me.

Any views would be really appreciated.

[TylerD]

Hi saints1234

Such a long amount of time to live with it! At least now you're on the right track to getting it sorted.

I was originally booked in with a surgeon on the NHS until I had the opportunity to go private. Like 'improving' mentioned, I went with Mr Levick - I'm now 2 weeks post op.

The whole process for me, from doc to NHS all went smoothly, I was expecting them to start asking me about the whole emotional side of it but they told me I fell into the category to get it done. The only other thing mentioned was funding. It may not be possible at all if they couldn't get funding or it may just be delayed. When I was added to the waiting list I was told approx 2-3 months.

A few things put me off about the NHS though. Some of the stories on here but the main thing was being told they may or may NOT remove the gland! So lipo only. He told me it's "lipo +/- gland removal" and I wouldn't know if they had done both until I woke up after the surgery. I would have to then go back for a second procedure if I wasn't happy. If you check out my thread on my op, you'll see that gland removal was 100% necessary. It kind of angers me that I was told "if we can get away with just lipo, we will". It does make you wonder if they do really see this as a problem.. do they not fully understand the emotional impact? How can they even think for one moment any of us want this doing for cosmetic reasons only!?

I kind of felt I had no choice but to give it a go with the NHS with it being free, but like I said, I was fortunate enough to then go private.

It is a LOT of money but when looking at the bigger picture and what a difference it will make, it's justifiable.

Another thing that put me off the NHS was the surgeon himself, he had his own private surgery so I checked out his website and he had no before/after photos or any real info on it. It was just generally listed as a procedure he does.

Is it possible for you to go get a free consultation with either Levick or Karadis? Even if you are unable to go with them for the actual op, they're so well respected and knowledgeable in doing these ops, I think it would be great to see what they said about yours.

Why is it that this surgeon wants you to have an MRI and photos taken?
I didn't have an MRI with the NHS but they took the photos only once I was confirmed and put on the waiting list.

It would be good to see some photos of your chest. Can get a better idea then.

Hope some of this helps!

[saints1234]

Hi,
Thanks for taking time out to write a reply and here are a few pics. I just want to know if anything could be done do make the chest look flatter but not silly due to my upper chest being quite developed?

[Nips]

From my experience I would say avoid the NHS.

I had an op in 2009 for gyne puffy nipples. To cut a long story short the results were a bit of bulk was taken away (only a mild form of gyne but puffy nips the main issue) which seemed to make the puffy nipple situation enhanced!
After trying to get a revision for a year or so the NHS denied another op with the government cuts etc.

I was a bit of a novice back then I must admit and guess I didn't know my options. If you go private you can be way more specific on who you choose and make sure they're well experienced with the procedure. It's much harder to choose your surgeon with the NHS.

I ended up seeing 4 surgeons in Nottingham/London before deciding who to go with and am happy the NHS denied me the chance of a revision. It's only four weeks since surgery but one thing I'm sure of is this job is WAY better than the first on the NHS. 

If you decide to go with the NHS make sure you do your research, and ask as many questions as you need to to make sure the surgeon is very gyne experienced. Ask to see photos of their work etc.

Best of luck mate