New Member

Marly100

Hello, my name is Marlana.  I recently had a mastectomy with tissue expander surgery on Aug. 30th. I had dcis high grade. Pathology report was good for the most part. I've had 2 saline injections so far. My pain was manageable the 1st 2 weeks with pain medication and ice packs, but now, almost a month since surgery, my pain has worsened. I feel burning in my chest where my cleavage used to be. Last night, for the 1st time, I tried lying on my sides. I had what felt like a soft ball, the size of a ping-pong ball, moving as I moved and burning pain followed. During the day I'm ok if I just sitting, but moving around, such as getting up or down, reaching, bending over is very painful. Has anyone had these problems? I see my plastic surgeon tomorrow morning.  Hoping what I'm feeling is normal. Looking forward to chatting with everyone.  Thank you.

arpie

Welcome to the Forum, @Marly100 ... so sorry to read of your pain issues ..... it could be caused by a seroma (fluid build up after the surgery.)   All the best for your meeting with your surgeon today - I hope they can rectify it for you xx

Do you have a breast care/Mcgrath nurse you can contact with any queries that you have?  That can bring peace of mind too.


take care

GinGin

Hey @Marly100,
This crappy BC is annoying! I had lumpectomy and after the 1st Chemo treatment, the skin under my lumpectomy incision line is sore every time when I decide to get out of bed each time during the night.
I thought it has sort of partially healed before I started my chemo NOT. I have spoken to my oncologist nurse and she brushed it away. I briefly mentioned to my physio, she says it’s not seroma but can’t tell me what it is. I’ll be seeing my medical oncologist doc next week and will tell him about it….

I know our bodies take time to heal and these uncomfortable sensations popping every now and then unfortunately do worry us.

Like what @Arpie mentioned, hope your surgeon can tell you what it is and fix it😊.

xx
Gin

arpie

So sorry to hear of your pain too, @GinGin .... maybe you should ring your surgeon's office too, to keep them in the loop.  I would expect they'd want to see you too  .... tho the Onc may have some suggestions as well ... hmmmm .... not impressed that the Onc Nurse 'brushed it away' ..... it is important that they be aware of ALL side effects of your treatments - AND take it seriously!  grrr

Afraser

@Marly100

Pain is pain and needs attention. A seroma might be the cause depending where it is sited but I had a huge, long lasting one and while it audibly sloshed when I bent over, it didn’t hurt. Best wishes for a speedy resolution. 

GinGin

@arpie, good idea! I’m only due to see my surgeon in mid Dec but will call to see him earlier. I’ll also call my breast care nurse next week and hear what she says.😊

Julez1958

Hi @Marly100 and @GinGin
Everyone  has different experiences and experiences pain differently .
I had mastectomy with insertion of tissue expander but as my breast was E cup and I was going to a C cup I didn’t actually need any more saline injections.
Nevertheless , I had bad pain requiring Endone for 6 weeks.
I then tapered down to panadeine forte  and then Panadol - I really didn’t feel good until 3 months after the surgery.
I got quite down as I had never been a person to get aches and pains ( we had Panadol for visitors).
My breast care nurse and surgeon just keep saying “ everyone is different it will get better”.
That was my experience - I think it’s important to let your medical team know about your pain and take the pain meds .
Three years on the pain is just a fading memory for me.