burning in upper arm LE?

maria26

Hi Ladies,

I am almost 4 years out since surgery. Have had very slight swelling over lumpectomy scar shortly after surgery had seroma drained twice. Over the years any over use gardening, decorating has caused area under arm and back to swell a bit for a few days but nothing to bad. Lately i have noticed a bit more swelling in breast and a very light pinkness. now I am experiencing a burning sensation in upper arm but no swelling. Previous to this i had some pains between spine and shoulder blade same as in 2013 after rads. It resolved with pt. Saw my consultant who said it was burstitis. He pressed hard and made me put my arm up my back. Since then the swelling has worsened. I must admit I kept pushing pressing the area in the back to loosen knots and used a lot of heat. That is better, but now this which I feel is some Le mainly in the breast but the arm burning is a worry.

I just get told you only had 4 sentinnel nodes removed but I also have awful scarring and shrinkage of the reast so the rads did a number on me. I know I will have to fight to see a le specialist so what can i do in the meantime. Just get told your recent ct was clear that shows shoulder etc. yes, but it wont show le.

Any advice ladies

Maria

Binney4

Hi, Maria,

I'm so sorry to hear about these new problems you're dealing with. Here are some suggestions for dealing with lymphedema while you wait for an appointment with a well-trained lymphedema therapist:

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/How_You_Can_Cope_wi...

And here's how to find a qualified lymphedema therapist near you:

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/Finding_a_Qualified...

As for helping your medical team learn more about lymphedema, here's an article you can copy for them, written by an MD with lymphedema:

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/essential%20informa...

Redness is a common symptom of truncal (breast/chest/back) lymphedema, but it can also be a symptom of cellulitis infection, which is a serious risk when lymphedema is present, so it does need to be checked out (the chances are your doctor won't know it's also an issue with lymphedema, so do tell him/her). Here's more information about cellulitis:

http://www.stepup-speakout.org/Emergencies_and_Med...

Unfortunately, getting good lymphedema care too often requires that we stand up and keep pushing for it. We're with you on this! Please let us know how you're doing.

Gentle hugs,
Binney