Pain in breast when I stretch or move a certain way

Rose12

Everytime I stretch or turn a certain way I get a horrific pain under my breast. It is a very bad pain that last for a while. I did mention this one time to my Dr. a while back and he said it was from the surgery. I have another app't coming up I will mention it to him again. Anyone else have this pain from streching? I had a lumpectomy. 

raynaj

Rose12

I am just 13 days post surgery and have a lot of pain and swelling yet and was reading up on nerve pain. A lot of woman say their pain and swelling can last years. I would definitely mention your pain to your dr. just to make sure its not something else. I know they can drain fluid off if you had Nodes removed. And I was warned about the nerve pain. I also had the feeling like a hot knife is being stabbed into my breast right above the nipple but my surgery wasnt that long ago. It looks like your surgery was a while back so you should tell your doctor soon, don't wait (just in case). God Bless you and stay confident "This Too Shall Pass". Prayers and internet hugs,

Rayna

Alcie1

If you had radiation it could be from cooked lymphatics.  There is therapy for lymphatic cording or axillary web syndrome.  There are therapists trained to crush the lymphatic cords to let the lymph drain through different channels.

rosebyanyothername

it sounds like the same pain i get   i had amast. and then rads   so i am pretty tight  .   i wish i could tell you  what was going on , then i would know too.   this pain takes my breath away  and i have to wait it out.  all from moving in the wrong direction.   i dont wish it on anyone.

Rose12

Rose, 

I just saw the B/S Dr. he told me it is arthritis and it is from the Rads. It is under my breast,the ribs. He told me he gets that question 15 times a week from women who are post menopausal. I couldn't believe it when he told me how often he gets this question. It could also be from the Femara I am taking. I am getting ready for a bone densitsity test so I am curious what it will show. I know what you mean about taking your breath away. It is so painful it does take your breath away thats how painful it is. 

jg10

Some of you might be experiencing muscular spasms. I had a lot of those after my surgery, and they responded well to constant relaxation techniques, stretches, and gentle massages. I could not tolerate muscle relaxants. I also had nerve pain, but that was sharper with a lot of hypersensitivity. Tight muscles can compress nerves and worsen lymphedema, therefore relaxing muscles might have long- term benefits. Another possibility is scar tissue, which can be lessened with either surgery or with deep tissue massages. Pain can be caused by different breast cancer surgeries and therapies, therefore I learned that trying different things overtime was necessary to increase my comfort level. I hope all of you find ways to lessen your pain, although you might have to be very persistent. /p>

dlb823

I'm not a doctor, but what you're describing sounds like it could be truncal lymphedema, which can cause stabbing pains when it flares up.  There are quite a few women on BCO with that (including me), but in 5 years, I have not seen one report here or anywhere of arthritis in the ribs.

You might want to use the SEARCH feature (to the upper left here), and read up on truncal lymphedema or truncal LE, to see if that's possibly what's going on.  Of course, it could be something else, including arthritis.  But if it just might be truncal LE, which many docs don't recognize, there are absolutely things you can do to prevent it from getting so bad that it's painful.    (((Hugs)))   Deanna

Rose12

Will do that Deanna, I thought it was a little strange for him to say that but he did check my other breast underneath by ribs and it also hurt like the cancer breast. I will see how my bone density report comes out. Will do the search. Thanks. 

lilzal

i had a lumpectomy 7 mo ago and i'm still having pain, streching exsercises had help me 

MaggiPgh

I can't believe your dr. Actually told u u had arthritis! It sounds like nerve damage to me but I'm also not a dr. I've been dealing w pain for some time and hope by now that hours has subsided. Maggi

Rose12

Yeah I am really sorry I posted what he said. I feel embarrssed. I think he is really burned out. Time to retire.  The office is so busy, I had to wait 1hr and 1/2 last time I was there.I truly believe it is the truncal lympheda as it only happens every now and then when it flares up. Not all the time. I could have arthristis too but I don't get those stabbing pains in my other breast. 

dlb823

Arthritis affects the joints. Your doc may be burned out and his office may suffer from poor scheduling, but those are not excuses for such a silly explanation.  And yes, you may have arthritis too, and if you're possibly on an A/I, that could be exaccerbating it.  But I very much doubt it's in your ribs.

Did your doctor do an exam or any imaging before coming up with his explanation?    Deanna

DiamondGirl

Hi ladies,

I'm glad to find this thread.  I'm 3 years out of first diagnosis and by end of this month would be 3rd year anniversary from surgery as well (I had a partial mast).  I can attest to having severe pain after my 33 rads.  I have also developed mild LE on my axilla and left breast, swelling and stabbing pain if I lifted something with my left arm.  I had 6 months of LE massages (twice a week) but was too painful to go through.  My therapist thought that I had severe nerve pain and scar tissues, range of motion is not good either.  I would like to get more info on the stretching techniques because I don't think that I'm doing it correctly.

If you've had a deep tissue massage, can you please give a description on what kind of pain level to expect?

Thanks,

dlb823

From everything I've learned in dealing with my moderate truncal LE, LE and deep tissue massage do not go together.  You need gentle massage to move the fluid out of the areas in which it pools.  Pressing deeply can exaccerbate the problem and cause celllulitis, which is much more serious.

Here's a description of proper LE massage, along with other tips, from the NCI website:  http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/supportivecare/lymphedema/healthprofessional/page2#Section_94

There are some good videos on YouTube showing proper self-massage techniques.  And be very careful with stretching.  After a very painful flare up when a friend coached me in her stretching routine, I used a trainer for a couple of months to show me what I could safely do.  He wasn't specifically experienced with LE, but when I explained my surgery (mx+Diep) and limitations, he quickly caught on and I never had a problem if I didn't overdo it.      Deanna 

proudtospin

I used to have deep tissue massage but not since all this stuff...it was lovely!  But my massage lady knows she can not do that anymore.  I get sudden deep stabs of pain when I move a certain way.  It passes.  Stretching helps all sorts of things but so far I have not found a stretch that helps the ribbie pain.  (I did actually have an  x ray last year as I thought I had broken a bone...not.

guess I will ask my trainer this weekend if he has thoughts..