Just wondering if lymphoedema can develop in arm on ’ good side ’ too?
Reason I ask is I had a blood test done on 'good arm ’ over a week ago, never have any problems usually, but after nurse had done it she said she’d been abit wary as vein was very close to tendon ad she didn’t want to hit tendon…well I think she did as my arm was very painful or days after and I had alot of brusing and swelling…now bruising has gone [almost] but arm still aches, is painful to the touch and appears slightly raised?
Karen
I had this and the slight pain lasted for many months and the veins are still useless 3 years on.
As far as I know you only risk lymphodoema if they have gone into your axilla and this seems not be the case. I was told this by a PS working on my “less bad” side.
Maybe ring the help line if you’re really concerned.
D
Hi Karen
Funnily enough, this has just come up on the MacMillan site (they don’t have a dedicated lymphoedema board - something I’m trying to get them to change - so you need to get to the end of the thread to see how it’s relevant to you). The link is:
whatnow.org.uk/cancer-forums/request-administrators-site
You are now the fourth person I’ve heard of with this problem; the lady on the MacMillan site, the wife of a former colleague and a lady with, I think, the username of dawn, who has posted occasionally on this site about it.
Whether it is true (secondary) lymphoedema or not, I’m not sure. As Dahlia says, that is most likely to occur when the nodes have been removed or irradiated, but any kind of trauma to the lymphatics could trigger a problem, I suppose. Best to keep an eye on it.
The wife of a former colleague who developed it was treated privately (local NHS lympho service was no help) by a specialist hand/arm physio who had a customised adjustable pressure garment made for her. Eventually it settled down and the last I heard she didn’t need to wear really at all any more.
Hope this helps a bit…
X
S