Post DIEP flap hematoma and breathlessness

Hi I am knew to the site.  I am yet to have my DIEP (20/2//2015) and still recovering form my recent mastectomy.   I can't give you information on the progress post DIEP,  however I had post op complications. Before my mstectomy I had 2 wide excisions.  I had a post op  infection following my  second excision. I felt there was somethig wrong  despite being on anibiotics and rang my surgeon and she told me to pop in to see her. She was great and reassured me -  only problem she saw me too quickly. As the evening progressed I had severe breast pain so went to the local hospital during the night  and one particular nurse treated me as if ther was nothing major with me. As it was, I had a pseudomonas wound infection and needed hopsitalisation for a week with different antibiotics.

I guess the point I am making  listen to your body, ignore staff attitudes and seek other opinions. Do not let them pass it off as anxiety. I agree with Jane221. Ring your plastic surgeon- from my experience they want your operation to be a success with minimal post op complications. talk to your Breastcare Sister

Hope your situation improves and will be thinking of you. Ro.

Hi. After my mastectomy, I noticed about  a day or two some excessive fattyness on the side and towards my back and in the centre, which felt unusual. I thought there was excess fluid building up. These "lumps" where situated near the incisions. I had 2 drains and had lots of fluid coming out. The PS Registrar told me the lumps were just fat and I said they felt sore and not like fat at all. I went home with the drains in and about a week of two later, became unwell. I went to emergency and had a blood test and they found bacteria in the drains. I was transferred back to the mastectomy hospital and had an ultrasound and biopsies of these "fatty" areas and low and behold, it was excessive fluid which was trapped. I had them aspirated. 40ml from my side and 12ml from the centre. I felt like saying to the PS Registrar "I told you so". Moral of the story. Trust yourself and get checked thoroughly. Sometimes you have to be firm with doctors, but also understanding, as they are probably under a lot of pressure as well. Get help for anxiety. Prayer to Jesus is powerful, if your heart is in the right place. Sharon

I'd encourage you to go back to the plastic surgeon ASAP. I didn't have any Haemetomas or shortness of breath but the centre of my chest hurt for a very long time, months. (I am 12 months post DIEP). A nurse explained that this is due to the cutting through the rib bones in the centre of the chest area to reattached the arteries during the reconstruction. Think of how long it takes for broken bones to heal. I did have a large abdominal seroma (so not blood, but fluid) and that was drained once then left the second time and it eventually was reabsorbed.

If you are pacing the house with worry, then you really need some help with your anxiety. Even if the anxiety is based on good medical reasons and there are some grounds for your worry, you need to rest to recover from this massive operation. It took me 4 months to physically recover and another 4 months to psychologically recover. Be kind to yourself, take it slowly and seek support. Your breast cancer centre should have a counsellor avaliable. If you are lucky enough to be in WA, Breast Cancer Care WA are AMAZING. Ring them now. If you are in another state, look under sharing and support on this Breast Cancer Network page. Or ring any cancer support organisation and ask to be directed to a specific support organisation. 

Best wishes. Don't go it alone with this worry.

Hi, sorry to hear of your bad trot. I have not been down the same road as you so the only advice I can give is to trust your own body, listen to it and keep demanding that the Dr's listen to you and check things out. Love Glenys

Hi, I hope your discomfort has started to settle down now, and I can understand your concerns. You have done the right thing and had the appropriate tests that I would want if I had the same symptoms. Everything is ok, which is great. However, if you think it isn't, or if things get worse, you should get another opinion, or take yourself to the ED at your hospital. Your central chest pain/ heartburn, may well just be that. After surgery you have been inactive and probably lying down, so some heart burn might be present. Have you tried some antacids? Definitely tell your PS when you see him, and don't be fobbed off if you are worried. Re the haematoma, I have had 2 of them. The first one following my mastectomy happened a few weeks after surgery. It was about the size of a golf ball, and gradually subsided and resolved itself. I used Hurodoid cream to help break it down and the surgeon didn't want to aspirate this. It all went away but took about 8 weeks to disappear. My second haematoma occured 3 weeks after my second mastectomy and insertion of expanders. I was on holidays and it happened spontaneously just before flying home from Perth. This one was large, and I needed surgery in Perth to remove the clot and stop the bleeding. About 1 litre of blood was removed, the expander replaced and everything healed up really quickly. Much faster than the smaller clot. I have absolutely no residual effects from either of these 2 haematomas. Good luck with your healing, and I hope you can get some answers quickly for your symptoms. Love Chris

Hi, I hope your discomfort has started to settle down now, and I can understand your concerns. You have done the right thing and had the appropriate tests that I would want if I had the same symptoms. Everything is ok, which is great. However, if you think it isn't, or if things get worse, you should get another opinion, or take yourself to the ED at your hospital. Your central chest pain/ heartburn, may well just be that. After surgery you have been inactive and probably lying down, so some heart burn might be present. Have you tried some antacids? Definitely tell your PS when you see him, and don't be fobbed off if you are worried. Re the haematoma, I have had 2 of them. The first one following my mastectomy happened a few weeks after surgery. It was about the size of a golf ball, and gradually subsided and resolved itself. I used Hurodoid cream to help break it down and the surgeon didn't want to aspirate this. It all went away but took about 8 weeks to disappear. My second haematoma occured 3 weeks after my second mastectomy and insertion of expanders. I was on holidays and it happened spontaneously just before flying home from Perth. This one was large, and I needed surgery in Perth to remove the clot and stop the bleeding. About 1 litre of blood was removed, the expander replaced and everything healed up really quickly. Much faster than the smaller clot. I have absolutely no residual effects from either of these 2 haematomas. Good luck with your healing, and I hope you can get some answers quickly for your symptoms. Love Chris