seroma

my mother had mastectomy on july 07 and after the surgery she had drain 4 about 20 days.the drain was removed whn drain fluid amt was abt 20ml..aftr tht she had abt 6 cycles of chemo.each time v went to the dr thr was fluid collection nd was aspirated..the aspirated fluid was blood red in colour.aftr tht she devoloped fever nd infection of tht area..thr was fluid collection of abt 400 ml..thn she was put on many antibiotics as the fluid culture showed heavy growth of bacteria.the dr diagnosed it to b a SEROMA..now the fevr nd signs of inflammation has decreased nd now again she has been put a drain.nw its been 20 days after the drain has been put..nw the drain fluid is yellow in colour nd the amount has decreased to 12ml.but she has a catching pain in tht area.coz of ths radiation is delayed
my question to u is ''Is POST MASTECTOMY SEROMA COMMON??can it b a intra operative mistake whch has occured to surgeon tht aftr evn 6 months there is collection in tht area?is thr ny problm tht radiation is gtng delayed?y is thr nw a pain at tht  site?is it a sign of the cavity gtng closed?kindly ans thse..

[DrBhumikaMD]

Hi,
It is very sad about the post surgical course of events in your mother's case. A seroma usually fills the surgical cavity after mastectomy and helps to naturally remould the breast’s shape. Gradually, the seroma is absorbed and replaced with scar tissue. This healing process and formation of scar takes months.
In rare cases, women may experience recurring seromas after lumpectomy or mastectomy. These collections or seroma are usually drained. If a seroma recurs, compression or sclerosis is used to fill and harden the space in the breast.
Depending on the location of the mass, its initial size, the type of incision used, etc. the final result will be different for each person. So, it is not an intraoperative mistake by your surgeon.
Your oncologist might not want to start the radiation till the seroma or the infection resolves. About the pain at the site, you should ask your surgeon for painkillers and also the reason of the pain. Discuss all this with your surgeon and oncologist so that all your doubts are cleared.
Hope this helps.
Good luck.

[donnarice]

i had seroma after my exchange surgery on 4/27/06.  I had fluid build up twice once in january 07, and again in june 07 drains were put in an about 500cc of fluid was removed and tested it was clear fluid on took anti-bio.  i am afriad to do much of anything anymore but, i guess i have too see if it will return , so after christmas i will begin excersising again and see what happens. my new p/s wants to go in again and removed implants for 2 weeks and then try again.  i dont know what to do......

[Jerusala]

I had surgery a few weeks ago and I now have hard lumps in the location of the lumpectony. The nurse said it was probably seroma. Will exercise such as swimming help get rid of it or make it worse. If it is something that comes and goes should I just ignore it? will it hurt me to ignore it?

[Jerusala]

I had surgery a few weeks ago and I now have hard lumps in the location of the lumpectony. The nurse said it was probably seroma. Will exercise such as swimming help get rid of it or make it worse. If it is something that comes and goes should I just ignore it? will it hurt me to ignore it?

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,
The seroma is a normal finding. You just need to follow up with your doctor and ask him about breast exercises and breast massage. Also ask him waht precautions you need to take - like not lifting heavy weights etc.
Swimming should be taken up only after your doctor's consent and that too after a few weeks of the surgery - otherwise the normal wound healing process wounld get impaired due to stretch forces at the wound site.
Do follow u with your doctor regularly - even post surgery, so that your progress clinically can be assessed and the wound status - whether healing and healthy can be examined.
Do let us know about your progress.
Hope this helps.
Good luck.