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Zoffiel's avatar
Zoffiel
Member
9 years ago

Seroma Circus

It's coming up to four weeks since I had surgery to remove a whopping great tumour that signalled the return of my breast cancer after ten years disease free.
Today I had my pet seroma drained for the third time. Ten years ago, post Twotitectomy, I leaked for weeks. Eventually the drains failed this time too, so now my gruesome little friend is collecting about 500ml (yes, five hundred)  in five days. It's relatively painless, but is uncomfortable. More importantly, it's buggering up my chances of starting chemo.
Now, that's interesting. I'm still trying to convince myself that the odds of survival if I opt for another damned good poisoning outweigh my capacity to develop every complication known to science. And then some. Funny how your body can conspire with your mind to create obstacles which prevent you making decisions.
coping
side-effects

6 Replies

  • Brenda5's avatar
    Brenda5
    Member
    9 years ago
    I had a big compression sticky dressing across my chest on my seroma. The pressure made it get smaller and smaller until gone. I only needed one more drain after that and it went. If there's any swelling or stiffness I get stuck in to the massage. Don't leave it.
  • onemargie's avatar
    onemargie
    Member
    9 years ago
    I'm cant believe you had a double and it still came back after 10 years where your seroma is that's bullshit isnt it. I'm about to have my other boob off as a preventative as I thought I would avoid that. I am very lucky to never had any concerns with a seroma but I'm sending you a big hug and wish you all the very best with your treatment I understand how your body is conspiring with your mind, its doing it to me now too!! Chemo has come a long way in 10 years so my oncologist said so hopefully you will get through it all ok. I wasn't too bad I had 4 AC and 4 taxol and still managed to function with day to day stuff. I finished 5 weeks ago. Margie
  • Afraser's avatar
    Afraser
    Member
    9 years ago
    My lymphoedema therapist finally helped reduce it a lot, before the last infection hit, by massage which I suppose is a form of compression. The fluid is supposed to disperse by itself but if you have a persistent friend, it just keeps doing one last performance, Melba like! My therapist also found a lump (eek!) - she didn't think it was anything serious but back to my surgeon and his ultrasound lady. 'It's a seroma' she said ( well we knew that, but what's the lump?'. 'It's a seroma' she said patiently, 'you have a seroma within a seroma'. Gimme strength!! But we got it all finally.
  • Zoffiel's avatar
    Zoffiel
    Member
    9 years ago
    Thanks A. The 'new' tumour had set up camp in the site of a seroma that formed after my initial sentinel node op. I kid you not, I've had that site investigated dozens of times in the last decade. I hate being right some times.

    The sloshing is creepy. Sloshing right now as I'm typing. And squelching. And wondering when the cavity will refill. I've read compression helps. How do you compress an armpit?. It's an interesting world. Yes, had the infection in the past. Grrr. And 'erk'. Lots of 'erk'
  • Afraser's avatar
    Afraser
    Member
    9 years ago
    Seromas are an absolute pain in the butt and potentially dangerous! My personal best was one and a half litres in one aspiration, no exaggeration! Up to that point I thought a mastectomy looked like that, nicely rounded! My pet hate was when I bent over and audibly sloshed. Relatively painless as you say, problem is a nice little (or big) warm internal pond is heaven for the bad bacteria we all have. 2 infections were relatively mild but the last ( a year after surgery!) landed me in hospital for a week and heavy duty 24 hour antibiotics. Enhanced appreciation about the old line on death certificates of 'death by sepsis'! My surgeon did the right but slightly risky think of opening up my mastectomy scar and giving me a 'good scrub out'. A week of intravenous killer fluid hadn't actually touched the infection core, even though I felt a lot better, but the scrub out did. Goodbye seroma, goodbye infections, hello prosthesis (finally!). Don't let your gruesome little friend hang around is my advice, even though your body is trying to help. The intentions are good, but the outcome may not be and you have other priorities right now. Best wishes!