Any Stage 3 have radiation delayed due to bmx infection/wound?

Anonymous
Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376

Hi, I'm scared my radiation is being postponed due to a wound that has opened up and an infection that I developed post bmx.  I'm now 4 weeks post surgery and really need the radiation as mine is an aggressive cancer and this is a recurrence.  Anyone have this experience or can help me to think this thru?

Comments

  • Nan54
    Nan54 Member Posts: 93
    edited February 2014

    Hi HVV,  did you have reconstruction? I had a MX with immediate implant reconstruction and had an awful time healing. I had a debridement surgery to remove the skin not healing well and had a smaller implant placed. It still didn't heal and need up getting infected with pseudomonas (which I understand is pretty rare to happen in an otherwise healthy individual). They removed this second implant and, when I was finally put on the right antibiotic, it healed up very quickly. I didn't need radiation, but from original surgery to final healing was over 4 months. I believe my body was fighting this infection for a long time and had I been on the right antibiotic sooner, I would have healed quicker. My white blood cell count was never elevated and I didn't have a fever, but the area was clearly red and inflamed where it wasn't healing. I tell you all of this just so you can ensure that there is no infection slowing down the healing, as this is not always obvious and can get missed for months. Good luck to you - hugs!

  • Anonymous
    Anonymous Member Posts: 1,376
    edited February 2014

    Thank you. I received antibiotics for a suspected infection yesterday - they are culturing the smaples.  I am not doing recon and have had radiaiton previously.

  • Kathleen26
    Kathleen26 Member Posts: 210
    edited February 2014

    The wounds from my MX really took a long time to close.   There was an area that I believe just didn't have enough stitches to hold the skin edges close together.   I couldn't start radiaion until they were totally closed.  The rad onc said I needed to start radiation within 4 weeks or it wouldn't be effective, so I was really frantic about it.   I ended up starting almost 5 weeks later, and so far everything is fine.  In the end, I think it was better that I waited because it gave my whole system a chance to recover from surgery, which I had only 10 days after my last chemo.   Radiation was tough on me, and I was later glad I had a bit of a rest to go into it.   I know what you're going through, it just feels like you have to attack, attack, attack, and any delay is scary.   But you want to be able to call on your body's resources to help you, and sometimes a delay is helpful.

  • ziggypop
    ziggypop Member Posts: 1,071
    edited February 2014

    Hi HVV, 

    Good lord - hard enough to have to go through this once, much less have a recurrence and then an infection on top of it, I am so sorry that you are having to endure this. I haven't had this happen, but I can only assume that they are going to work as quickly as possible to get that infection kicked out of your body and the RADS started. Where exactly is the recurrence - i.e is it along the scar, in nodes, chest wall?

  • lulud471
    lulud471 Member Posts: 89
    edited March 2014

    Hi - I'm writing in case my experience can help you.   My pseudomonas infection was under-treated & I had at least 5 surgeries after BMX - for debridement. I finally ended up going to Johns Hopkins Chief of Infectious Disease who put me on 8 weeks of levoquin 750 mg.  After that, I did finally heal (wound stayed closed finally) - 13 long months after my BMX.  All of this was due to the infection being under-treated:  prior to Hopkins' 8 weeks of antibiotics, the longest I was on any antibiotic was 2 weeks - which was clearly not enough.  I never had high fever & sometimes skin was only slightly red & warm.  Good luck!

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