Need info about a Picc Line - HELP!

Bettina....  I had a PICC line put in.  I had it in for 3  cycles of chemo and then I developed a blood clot near it and they had to take it out.  I still have 3 more chemos to go and I need some kind of new port now.  The PICC line worked fine until I got that clot.  It is placed in the inside of your upper arm, it is basically a permanent IV.  They thread it through a vein deep in your arm and it goes up your arm and into the chest area, but once its in there you don't feel it or anything.  You have to keep it covered and not get it wet, so wrapping your arm in Glad Press and Seal works well for taking a shower.  Also I had to go to the doctors office once a week for a cleaning and dressing change on it and they flush the line with saline to make sure it does not clog.  I wish I still had mine so I don't have to go through the process of getting another one, or getting a different kind of port.

The other kind of port a lot of people have is implanted in their chest, near their collar bone, and from what I hear most of them like it.  I think it is more of a surgery to get that one done,  the PICC line is quicker and with a local anesthetic.   I hope this helped some..... 

I'm still wishing that its only a nightmare, and mine's been going on since December!!!  I still can't believe this is my life.

Hi, Bettina ~  I was just about to post to your other thread when I saw this one.  Did you decide against a second opinion?  A port or a PICC line is only needed for certain kinds of chemo.  I had TC -- the newest regimen -- and did not need either one.  I don't think you shared your diagnosis with us on the other thread, but do you know what kind of chemo you'll be getting?   

Thinking of you ~   Deanna

Bettina, I had a PICC line and had no problems with it. I had 6 rounds of chemo so had the PICC line in for 3 1/2 months. It makes administering the chemo SO much easier, and completely painless physically. It also doesn't leave a scar.

I also had cancer in both breasts (IDC in one, DCIS in the other) and had a bilateral mastectomy. You are definitely in the nightmare/surreal phase of diagnosis, testing and beginning tx. It will get easier. I'm sorry you're going through it.

Bettina - I'll PM you with the reconstruction details.  I'm off to work today early... I'll send you my phone number, too, and you can call me.  Hugs.  Laura

Bettina, sorry for all you're going through. I was diagnosed last July, IDC and DCIS in one breast, both tumors were grade 3. I had 4 cycles of TC. I had two lumpectomies, then bilat mast, then a bilat mast revision and capsulectomy. No reconstruction.

Anyway, I have had other health problems so knew from the beginning that my veins are not useable. I had a PICC line for a previous (non-bc-related) surgery. It's quick, local anesthetic, but intended for short-term use and it hangs outside your arm. I had a port placed before chemo. The procedure is more involved, done under sedation. I got an infection that cleared with oral antibiotics. But the port required a lot of trial-and-error to get it to work, and eventually it had to be replaced (same procedure as the first one).

I finished chemo in December but I'm keeping the port for blood draws and semi-annual Zometa infusions. It's internal, requires a flush once-a-month. I can swim, bath, whatever. If you get a port, see if you can get a PowerPort. It can be used for CT scans, the regular kind can't.

Best of luck to you,

Cinda

Hi BShoemaker.

About not having reconstruction ... I've had many surgeries for other problems, including a permanent ileostomy in 2000 for Crohn's Disease, so I'm not bothered by freaky-looking things like having my small intestine sticking out of my abdomen or having scars where my breasts used to be. I chose C cup prostheses (I was a D or DD) and I think they look really good. I'm very pleased with my choice. It wasn't a hard choice for me and if I ever change my mind (very unlikely) I could have reconstruction later.

About the soup, since everything tasted pretty much like cardboard, I went for textures that I like. Since I didn't eat much else, I ate hearty soups that had noodles/pasta and vegetables. 

My surgery story does seem to be unusual. I don't think I've heard of anyone having 4 surgeries for one bc diagnosis. Diagnostic tests and biopsy showed one IDC tumor, so I had the 1st lumpectomy and SNB. Then path rpt came back with no clear margins, so I had a 2nd lumpectomy. That path rpt showed a DCIS tumor (also grade 3) and again no clear margins. Too much tissue had already been removed from the rt breast so mast was required on that side. I chose bilat mast instead; the path report this time was clear for both breasts.

Went on to have chemo. In the meantime, I developed a huge, very hard swelling in rt chest and underarm that turned out to be fluid and blood trapped in a "capsule" of scar tissue. In April, they "revised" the bilat mast (basically a do-over), removing the capsule and excess skin on both sides. 

Cinda

As far as port versus PICC..... I would opt for a port. They have a new power port, that can also be used to inject dye for tests. The port is completely enclosed under the skin (like a pacemaker, but smaller). The PICC line will hang from your arm giving you a direct line to your circulatory system. True, you don't have to be stuck with the PICC, but they are to high maintenance for me. I get my port flushed every 60 days, and u can use either some EMLA cream (rx item) or have doc get some ETHYL CHLORIDE to spray first.. this freezes the skin... I never have a painful port access, and I have had mine for 3 years now. The port also conserves your other veins just in case you need them for blood draws etc.

I had 3 surgeries......first a lumpectomy and lymph node biopsy,  but they didnt get clear margins, so an 2nd lumpectomy, and still found more DCIS and IDC.... so then a mastectomy....I only needed right side done, but I chose to do both so I could get thru chemo and then decide on reconstruction.. they would not do immediate reconstruction on me.  Since I was a DDD I didnt want to carry around that much boob on one side, only to have it reduced later and also would have worried about BC showing up in that side later.  I am still in chemo, 2 more rounds to go and then Herceptin until next March. so any plastic surgery is at least a year away.  I have to get a port installed too, my PICC line was fine for 2 months and then I got a blood clot so they had to remove it.  My veins are small and hard to get for an IV so my last chemo left bruises all over my arm.  I have to wait until I am off the blood thinner meds before they can do the port.

I have not decided for sure about reconstruction, but for now I have prosthesis that are size C and it is nice to not be so big.......

Hi Bettina:

Just wondering how you're feeling today?  Thinking of you...

Hugs, Linda