Inflammatory Breast Cancer After Mastectomy

[Mazzie]

I had a Mastectomy 2 1/2 months ago for DCIS with comedo necrosis.  Everything going fine.  My concern is an area on the bottom of my breast stays red.  This has been red since after the mastectomy.  I can't tell if there are any other symptoms because I am completely without feeling there.  My plastic surgeon says looks it is okay.  I thought it was my bra rubbing on that area but I wake up in the morning and the red area is still there.  I called my breast surgeon and he said (he has not seen me yet) from my path report says there was no invasive cancer found and it would be unlikely that there was inflammatory breast cancer there.  I think this might be IBC.  I am scared to death.  Is this reddness common with mastectomy patients?  Will the reddness ever go away? Could the path report be wrong? Antything you can help me with would be greatly apprecated.  

Thank you.

[CCF-RN,MSN-rf]

Dear mazzie: Without knowing more about the specifics of the surgery and reconstruction as well as performing a physical examination, we cannot comment on whether this redness would be expected in your case.  The most common concern with redness after surgery is infection.  Your breast surgeon and plastic surgeon would be best equipped to answer these questions.  If you are not comfortable, you could seek a second opinion with another breast specialist and have the pathology slides reviewed.  

[Sophie1]

My wife had much the same problem after a mastectomy in September. It turned out to be wire in the underneath of her bra. She removed the wire and the problem went away

[xrayu2]

I have seen inflammatory breast ca and usually it is very hot to the touch and the redness spreads quickly all around the breast.  It is probably just residual effects from the mastectomy.  Your best comfort will come from the doctor when he assures you that it is fine.

[Mazzie]

Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.  I saw my breast surgeon today and he examined and felt the red area on my breast and did an ultrasound on the area.  He did not see any inflamation on the ultrasound.  He told me that my path report says they only found DCIS and that this does not look like IBC.  He did look me in the eyes and said "You do not have IBC".  So now I feel better that I have seen 2 of my doctors who feel that it is not a problem.  To everyone out there with worries about their breast cancer, please see your physician if you have any questions.  They can truly make you feel so much better.

Thanks again for your help.