Thank you so much for your responses @bryna @poppy261 and @wibbles, I really appreciate you all taking the time to reply to me.
@bryna, it sounds like we are allergic to the opposite things, the normal PICC dressings (one with the white edges) seem ok on my most of the time. Slight redness sometimes. The nurses give me the tegaderm to patch myself up to keep the area sterile or that’s what they’ve told me. Last time I was there it was nearly all lifted under the film though.
@poppy261 and @wibbles, I definitely need to advocate for myself more. Everyone keeps telling me the PICCs are like gold dust and amazing but I’ve had continual issues with mine, it leaked pretty much constantly for the first 5 weeks it was in, nurses suspect a lymph node was nicked by when it was fitted. I was visiting the community nurses in a daily, sometimes twice daily, basis. Then one the weekend, one of the nurses used her initiative and changed it to a super absorbent pad and the film dressing. It finally stopped leaking but the dressing thing is annoying. The community nurses slather me in barrier stuff before applying anything and some barriers are better than others but none work completely. Usually it’s just red round the edge but twice now at different times it’s blistered. Like I said last time took weeks to heal then it turned into a blood blister. The oncology nurse during the telephone call wanted to see me when I went for chemo with a view to removing it as it was fitted for the EC but when I got there and mentioned it to the nurse doing my chemo just looked, brushed it off and said it was fine. I mentioned the PICC dressing was starting to lift at the side and it was also fine apparently. I can’t help but think if the nurse I spoke to on the phone had seen it, it would be out. Pic below of what it looked like when I saw them, too red section is blistered, red line under that is another reaction that scabbed over ever so slightly. You can also see faint lines where other reactions are healing. What you can’t see is the back of my arm which is bruised from where they removed the previous dressing.
@wibbles you sound even more sensitive skin wise than me, it must be so difficult. I did have sensitive skin before, allergic to perfumes, have to be careful with what skincare I use etc. Oncology nurse thinks it’s worse because of the chemo, I get a bit of heat rash under my breasts sometimes now, it’s usually just for a day or so towards the end of each cycle strangely. Also use fussy deodorant but only be unscented Bare All one, I can usually use some of the sensitive scented ones but too scared to even try them right now.
Thank you so much again ladies, the blister seems to be slightly smaller today so I’m hoping it heals faster than last time 