I had mastectomy and immediate reconstruction in August 2016. After nearly 5 years I still experience daily discomfort. Some days are worse than others (especially when it is cold) but I always have a tender or pulling sensation under my arm where the muscle was brought round and the implant area just constantly aches!!! Over the last few months it has also started to feel softer to touch too. I did wonder if it had a leak at one point!!!
Is anyone else in the same boat? I’ve mentioned it the surgical team at my last appointment but they were very dismissive of my concerns.
I’m 2 years on from chemo and surgery, and 1.5 from radiotherapy. When I finished my treatment, my BCN told me that I would probably experience discomfort and possibly pain for quite some time to come, but that I shouldn’t hesitate to get in touch if I was at all worried. And that’s exactly what’s happened. I’ve had several instances, where the usual discomfort increased to pain and panic, I’ve phoned my BCN, and each time (even in lockdown), they’ve told me to come in. I’ve seen my surgeon, he’s reassured me, and bingo - the pain has subsided. It seems we’ve all got to learn to live with these ups and downs, but the important things to remember are 1) you’re not on your own! There are lots of women on this forum who have posted with similar experiences and I’ve always found it really helpful to read about these. Just knowing that others have been there, knowing that I’m not overreacting or imagining things - it really helps. 2) if your breast care team aren’t very supportive, insist on getting help from them - that’s their job!! You could also give the lovely nurses on the forum a ring - they are very supportive and can give some general advice, which may in turn help you to get better support from your BCN.
Sorry, bit of a long post! Hope there’s something in all this that helps a little.
