Flying

If your doc is OK with it, go ahead. I found that I needed to elevate my arm frequently to manage the lymphedema. The flight attendant thought I was calling her

Slather yourself with Purell. Avoid obviously sick people. If you are seated next to a sick person, ask the flight crew for a seat change. It doesn't hurt to try.

Do not drink the plane's water, or any beverage made from the water. The potable water tanks are never cleaned. One would hope that a beverage made with boiled water from the tank would be OK, but you never know if the water was boiled long enough, or just "warmed".

Get up and move every hour to avoid getting a deep vein thrombosis. We cancer folk are prone to clots. Drink more fluid than you want to stay hydrated - going to the bathroom will take care of the moving around. Touch as little as possible in the bathroom, and bring disinfectant wipes for your tray/armrests and seating area.

12 lymph nodes gone on the mastectomy side. As long as I stay active (gardening, knitting), my arm is stable. Traveling seems to be an issue, as I have to drag suitcases, cram myself into shrinking airplane seats, etc. It was worse when my kid was younger, and I had to sherpa all his stuff as well as my own.

No - could be just the sentinel node biopsy. Could be years after surgery when you get a bug bite or pricked by a rose thorn. One major cause is diabetes. Anytime the lymph system has been interrupted you are at risk. Take a look at this site for more details.

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

hi!

Well, there's no strict med restrictiın on the matter.. yet my father retired from air force has banned all long distance flights for me.. knowing in detail the side effects of the high air pressure on the organs during flight ..

especially the lungs suffer a lot! Since dx, I ve been enjoying short flights (even avoid most whenever possible) and have'nt had a single long flight.

Hugs

Ebru