Is Swelling After Drain Removal Normal?

Terri, sorry your having swelling. Maybe ice? What's the removal of drains painful? I have had very little pain from the actual surgery and I'm trying to decide if I should take a pain pill before I go day after tomorrow.

The swelling really isn’t bad at all . And I think as someone else posted here that it was more due to the removal of the steri strips than the drains. I have been using ice and it isn’t getting any more swollen which is what the PA said to watch for. So I think all is fine. The removal of the drains is not really painful at all. It is very quick. The PA had me take a deep breath in and then blow it out while she pulled them. One side was so fast and I felt nothing. Couldn’t believe it was out so fast. The other side was a bit painful (but again fast). She said that drain was placed in a bit deeper. The only thing I would do differently if I had to do it over is I wouldn’t have had her remove the steri strips. She asked me if I wanted her to and she said it was totally up to me if I wanted to just let them fall off naturally or have her remove them .( or she could have removed them at next week’s appointment). I just said go ahead bc I thought we might as well. But besides the swelling, the incision is more sensitive now to the fabric of the surgical bra etc. I should have just left them to fall off or at least waited one more week. I don’t think you would need pain meds. I thought about taking Tylenol before but didn’t. But it certainly couldn’t hurt it you want to take something.

Thanks for the input Terri, I will definitely be letting them fall off naturally.

Karen- how did the drain removal go?

It went really well, just a little uncomfortable. My surgeon really wanted to remove the tape because I had some redness and irritation so I let her and it was fine. Today's 1 week since the surgery and the first day I went without the compression bra. How are you doing with the exercises? I have to say the numbness of the whole area across my breast really gives me the heebie jeebies. Hopefully I will get used to it or the numbness will go away. Hope you are doing well. Have you found out if you have to have chemo yet?

Oh I know , the numbness is so weird. I notice it especially when I get into the shower and I feel like I have clothes on. I do arm exercises two or three times a day and they definitely help. I am still wearing the compression bra and not sure when I get to take it off. At this point I don’t need chemo but possibly radiation. I have an appointment on the 19th with the radiation oncologist to see what he recommends. Do you know what is next for you? Do you have your pathology report back yet?

I only have the preliminary report on lymph nodes which is negative. I get the final on that one next Thursday. I get my results from the oncocyte Lab in 2-3 weeks, hopefully by the 26th which is when I see the oncologist. I'm so glad to hear that you don't need chemo. Keep me posted on the radiation.

So glad your lymph nodes were negative. That is a big deal. Keep me posted on the pathology and oncotype.

Hi Terri, I just got word from my surgeon that said Great News, we got all the cancer. Additionally, they found ductal cancer in my "good" breast. It was not invasive yet, but boy am I glad that I had a double mastectomy or I would have been facing this all again. I will not need radiation just waiting on my oncocyte results. Hope you are still making good progress on your healing.

That is fantastic news! Such a relief to get good pathology isn’t it? Hopefully you will also have a low Oncotype score and can just focus on healing. How are you feeling? I feel like recovery is taking longer than I had hoped. I went for a follow up yesterday and had to have some fluid aspirated from the right side. Is wasn’t much but it means I have to keep wearing the compression bra and have another check next week. And I am doing arm exercises but am still very sore under both arms. I shouldn’t complain, I know it could be much worse.

I hear you, the healing is slow going but I think maybe our expectations aren't reasonable. I'm sorry you had to have that done. Doesn't sound fun but hopefully you felt better afterward. When I wake up my whole chest and underarm area are so very tight until I do my exercises. And then I'm just sore. LOL I wonder if we'll have to do that the rest of our lives. I have a virtual visit with the surgeon tomorrow just to go over the test results that she sent me. When I saw her to get my drains out she said I'll see you in a year so I guess I don't have to see her in person. Have you been told to massage the scar and put silicone tape on daily? I'm supposed to as soon as there's no scabbing left. Not sure if I'll be able to do that, it just creeps me out to touch it because of the numb feeling. Have you had any sharp shooting,what I assume to be nerve pain? I've had that a couple of times a day but it's very quick and goes away justice as quick. She did prescribe Gabapentin for me to take one month after surgery for nerve pain. Hopefully you will get good news on the 19th.

Oh yes the tightness and the numbness are both so strange. Although the numbness definitely helped when they stuck a needle in to aspirate. lol I do get those sharp shooting pains as well. They are fairly often actually but so quick. I haven’t been told that about the scar yet but maybe because it is too early for me? I am guessing my healing is a little slower than yours due to the drains being in so much longer and still needing the aspiration. I just keep reminding myself that it hasn’t been three weeks yet (although that is tomorrow!)

Just thinking about you and wondering how your healing is going? What part of the country are you in, where did you have your surgery? I'm in California and had it at Stanford.

I am finally starting to feel much better and stronger. I haven’t noticed any more fluid build up so I think I will be able to stop wearing the compression bra after my next appointment. I have noticed that while one arm has regained almost full movement, the other one is still super sore . But guessing it will catch up. I am actually in Connecticut. Had both surgeries at Hartford Hospital. How are you doing/feeling?

Hi I'm getting mine removed Thursday that will be 2wk did it hurt

They had me put Vaseline on my strips and they fell off by themself

It really didn’t hurt. It may depend a bit on how long they were in. I had no pain at all in the right side. The nurse has me take a deep breath and then blow it out while she removed each drain. The left side was a bit uncomfortable. She told me it was a little more stuck than the right side. But it definitely wasn’t painful, and it is so quick. And really you will feel so much better after they are out.

Terri, I'm doing ok. The numbness/tightness is either getting a teeny bit better each day or I'm getting used to it, not sure which. I'm the same with one arm having almost full movement and the other one a little behind so I guess that's normal. I hope to be able to return to my volunteer position at the animal rescue in 2 weeks but that will be determined after I get my oncocyte results. Take care.

Karen, good to hear from you! I feel the same about the numbness. Thinking I might just be getting used to it. I have a bit of fluid again in my right side so I am still wearing compression bra during the day. It isn’t too much so I’m hoping it doesn’t get to the point where I will need it drained again. I went swimming for the first time today and it felt great. Although my arms became sore pretty quickly. That is so great that you volunteer at the animal rescue. I’m sure when you can get back to it, it will help with feeling more “normal”. I know my cats (2) have helped me so much. Probably more than my husband lol. I am also looking forward to getting fitted for the prosthesis in 2 weeks or so.

Wow that's awesome that you were able to swim. Do they know why the fluid builds up? Yes getting fitted will make a big difference for me too. I'm getting my fitting 7/14. When I go out in public now I wear a camisole with built in shelf bra and it looks fine. I was never big busted so it looks normal. Our pets really do help us.

Hi Terri, hope you're doing well. I got my oncocyte score, 22. So no chemo for me. I am so relieved. I forgot to ask how your appointment with the radiation doctor went. Do you have to have any? I hope not. My healing is progressing and I hope yours is too. Take care.

Hi Karen, so glad to hear about your Oncotype score. It is such a relief isn’t it. I had the appointment with radiation and taking all of my factors into account it seems like I am right on the border between needing radiation and not needing it . So we are going to see my medical oncologist on Wednesday and get his opinion as well. I think I am leaning towards doing the radiation to just be sure we got it all. But it has risks, of course, so I am really torn. In good news, I am healing really well and have an appointment for the 8th to get fitted for the prosthesis and bras etc. Glad to hear you are healing well also . We need to keep in touch. Too bad we are on opposite coasts!

It will be interesting to hear what the medical oncologist says. I mean all we can do is make an educated guess or go with our guy. I too, feel like my healing is finally coming along. I get fitted on the 14th. In the meantime I ordered a few camisoles with a bra shelf on Amazon and they are really comfortable.

Karen, hope you are still doing well! I am feeling so much stronger. I had my prosthesis fitting today and it was great! I had purchased a few from Athleta ( which are good but pretty light so they tend to ride up a bit and you need to pull the bra down). But today I got the silicone ones and I love them! They look very natural. I went with a B cup and I feel so much more normal now. They also work in bathing suits so I am looking forward to that. I am going to do 6 weeks of radiation. All three of the drs on my team thought that it isn’t 100% needed but they said it could be a good idea since we don’t know how I will do on the Tamoxifen or Letrozole. I have Crohn’s disease so the meds could really impact my treatment for Crohns and I may not last on the them for the full 7- 10 years. So at least this way we have been as aggressive as possible at this stage. I am hoping it won’t be too difficult.

Some swelling after drain removal is quite common as your body adjusts to the change and fluid dynamics shift following surgery. However, it's always wise to keep an eye on any new symptoms and reach out to your surgical team if you have concerns or notice significant changes, as they know your specific situation best and can provide personalized guidance about what to expect during your recovery.