Port placement and range of motion

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invisible
invisible Member Posts: 28
edited June 2014 in Managing Side Effects of Breast Cancer and Its Treatment
Port placement and range of motion
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  • invisible
    invisible Member Posts: 28
    edited June 2013

    I'm a month out from having a port placed.  I did all my initial treatments without one so this is new for me. For a variety of reasons surgery for this was a complicated and I had alot of hematoma and swelling.   I'm finding that the port gets in the way when I reach up or  across my body and interferes with range of motion.  More irritating is that it does the same in my favorite sleeping position. 

    Will the port eventually "settle" into a less irritating position, is it just another gift of cancer I have to get used to?

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  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited June 2013

    I am not a port expert, though I've had one for well over a year. Where is yours, exactly? Mine is very small (bard power port petite) placed in the little hollow between my shoulder and chest. If I make an extreme cross body move with my right arm, I can feel it, but it's not a way in which I normally move my arm.

    Caryn

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  • invisible
    invisible Member Posts: 28
    edited June 2013

    I'm actually not sure of the brand of device.  It's about 1.5 inches in diameter and sits about 1.5 inches below the collar bone and slightly left towards the armpit.  I can feel the device binding if it touch my opposite shoulder with my port side hand.  The higher my elbow is, the more I feel it.  A cross body reach of appoximately 45 degrees is all it takes to vex me during normal daily activies like cooking.

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  • exbrnxgrl
    exbrnxgrl Member Posts: 12,424
    edited June 2013

    Sorry you are having these problems. Sounds like the location of the port may be to blame for the discomfort. You might want to peak to your surgeon and see if anything can be done to adjust it's position. Most people do not notice their ports at all after initial healing. Also, you should have been given a credit card sized card with information on your port, brand and serial number, to carry with you as you now have an implanted medical device. Hoping things get better for you.

    Caryn

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