Breast Chips (Markers)

[Julie251]

I understand your concern.  I too have had about many painful needle-like sensations a in a few spots every single day for the last three years since surgery.  Because of that pain I have never dared to undergo a mammogram since the operation, so for all I know the cancer could've spread quite a bit by now.  There's no way I'm sticking a  painful breast under those machines if needles have been left in it.   Plain old instinct tells me that this would be especially harmful..

I'm sure these markers do cause pain in women and when they tell their doctors they just poo poo it.  They don't listen to women because then they would have to document it and if the records showed they caused problems they wouldn't be able to put these little toys inside women anymore.  I suspect my pain too is caused by those chips and will push harder to find out this time.  Hopefully I won't have to travel to the USA to find out.  

Surgeons don't realize that women's breasts weren't meant to be crushed and radiated regularly and have little toys implanted in them.  All of those things are a sure guarantee of a cancer return down the road..

I am telling every woman I know who has suspected cancer to get a "double mastectomy" instead of a lumpectomy!!   How badly I regret not having done that myself, because in my eyes, the definition of a  'lumpectomy" is merely  "a first cancer operation to be followed by another later."

This was the most painful operation in my life and it's not one women want to go through twice.  My feeling is that the reason they don't tell women about these breast markers is because they know darn well that not just you, but almost all thinking woman would refuse this nonsense!

I'm still in a rage from 40 years ago when I had other clips put in my body without permission.   I will die in rage from this because I think people should have a "right" to know what foreign bodies are being put inside them, especially if these things aren't essential to survival.    I feel as violated and angry as if I had been raped and I increasingly distrust doctors for purposely hiding this information from patients.    What is the reason for their deep dark secrecy?  That sort of thing should be against the law!  


This discussion is related to Titanium clips safe?.

[smart23]

I had a double mastectomy July 07.  I had severe pain under my arm where the disection of the lymph nodes were removed and continue to have this pain which only is getting worse.  Last December 09 I had an xray for other reasons and it showed these objects that looked like staples under my arm (exactly to the tee where my severe pain is).  I was amazed!! What is this I wanted to know immediately...well the drs there were vague in their answer but said it looked like clips that could be markers.  I made an appt with my bc surgeon with my xray in hand to find out what these 27 clips were under my arm.  He did EXACTLY what you said...Poo Poo..it is common procedure to use these instead of sutures and they are not the cause of my pain.  So mine were not used as markers but sutures.
I was outraged that these were used in me without my knowledge.  I went and got all my medical docs and specifically wanted to see his surgeon report from the mastectomy.  It did not state at all anything referring to using and especially leaving these clips in my body.  
Because I have a job that requires travel and much of my time I will be retiring in January so that I can pursue this with some type of specialist  (my Plastic surgeon is not excited about trying to remove them if I do have reconstruction..he cannot say he will guarentee that the pain will subside or increase) somewhere in this country.  I have had small reprints made of my xray to send out with some type of plea to help if get these out of me and hopefully the pain as well.  I am currently taking 8 5/325 percocets a day.  I weigh 102lbs now...I was 122 last year (5'6")
this has (with other issues they misdiagnosed) made me crazy but I must continue my work until my early retirement because of this.  The pills only make the pain bearable enough for me not to be in severe nauseous pain.
I have been on other breast cancer forums but cannot find anyone that has near the amount of clips in them as I have most are the markers as Julie refers to which is just as bad!!  I know I must be allergic to these because my underarm will flare up with heat about once a month if not more.  I also had 3rd degree burns while I was in radiation.  After the fact now I am told that the clips would not make a difference while being radiated right in that area.
  
If anyone out there has had or knows of any help I can pursue with this please let me know.

I agree with Julie...all this year that I have tried to find answers it is like a dark secret and no one will give me answers.  All the drs that I have seen say yes it looks excessive but that "should not be what is causing the pain"   I know my body and it is exactly what is causing my pain.

[japdip]

Please if you can, combine all your posts as comments on the same thread ..... this offers all the information in one place and makes it so much easier to give appropriate answers. Thanks