Mastectomy Always Means Reconstruction, Right? Wrong, Actually

I was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2016 at the age of 54, and was quickly told that I needed a left mastectomy.Why is it assumed that all women will want to have reconstruction? One reason could be that the medical professionals think that we all want to look exactly like we did before our surgeries, and that our breasts define us as women.After being told that I was going to have my left breast cut off, I was shown some gruesome after and after photos. I think they were actually call