Aa
Pain in my chest
I had a double mastectomy almost 2 years ago, with expanders put in at that time. I had my normal fills and was ready for the actual silicone inplants when they discovered I had lung cancer. The breast surgery was put on hold. I had 18 weeks of chemo and 7 weeks of radiation twice a day. I had one tumor up high in my left lung and one lempth node was cancerous, so my chest was pretty well baked. During all this treatment I began having terrible pain in my chest. It has never gone away. I have had every test any Dr can think of. One thought maybe costocondritis(inflamation between ribs). The pain is severe enough for pain meds every 4 hrs. My Drs don.t really know what to do, the plastic surgeon wants to wait for a while after the radiation to switch out the expanders to the silicone implants. In the mean while I am excausted from this pain. It is dibilitating and I can.t do anything. Does any of this make since or happened to anyone else?
Radiation and expanders/implants don't play well together. Did they check for capsular contraction?
Hi,
I am so sorry that you have to endure all this pain. :(
I hope that the information below could be helpful.
PAIN AFTER LUMPECTOMY OR MASTECTOMY SURGERY.
This is not an uncommon problem. It's a common phenomenon in at least 25 percent of women.Generally, when they have this syndrome, women will feel a lot of pain, numbness, and burning under the armpit and across the chest. Most of the time this occurs because of injury to a nerve. Commonly, there's a nerve called the Intercostal Brachial nerve, which is injured during surgery.
These sensations can last for a long period of time, and can actually occur anywhere from weeks after the surgery itself, to years later. Women who experience this pain should be seen in a Pain Center,because there are some nerve blocks that can be done. In particular, one that is sometimes helpful would be the Stellate Ganglion Block, which would be done by an anesthesiologist trained in pain medicine.
The other thing worth thinking about and considering ,would be acupuncture,many women seem to find relief rather quickly.
I really don't know if this information will really help,but you could call a Pain Center and inquire about it.
Wishing you all the best...
I am so sorry that you have to endure all this pain. :(
I hope that the information below could be helpful.
PAIN AFTER LUMPECTOMY OR MASTECTOMY SURGERY.
This is not an uncommon problem. It's a common phenomenon in at least 25 percent of women.Generally, when they have this syndrome, women will feel a lot of pain, numbness, and burning under the armpit and across the chest. Most of the time this occurs because of injury to a nerve. Commonly, there's a nerve called the Intercostal Brachial nerve, which is injured during surgery.
These sensations can last for a long period of time, and can actually occur anywhere from weeks after the surgery itself, to years later. Women who experience this pain should be seen in a Pain Center,because there are some nerve blocks that can be done. In particular, one that is sometimes helpful would be the Stellate Ganglion Block, which would be done by an anesthesiologist trained in pain medicine.
The other thing worth thinking about and considering ,would be acupuncture,many women seem to find relief rather quickly.
I really don't know if this information will really help,but you could call a Pain Center and inquire about it.
Wishing you all the best...
Have an Answer?
You are reading content posted in the Breast Cancer Community
A quick primer on the different ways breast cancer can be treated.
Diet and digestion have more to do with cancer prevention than you may realize
From mammograms to personal hygiene, learn the truth about these deadly breast cancer rumors.
A list of national and international resources and hotlines to help connect you to needed health and medical services.
Herpes sores blister, then burst, scab and heal.
Herpes spreads by oral, vaginal and anal sex.
