Large wounds not healing after lumpectomy, reconstruction/lift

You have my sympathy. My PS butchered me. Not only did my one-step reconstruction NOT look anything like boobs, about half of the right died, while the left ended up with a 6-inch seroma. I wore a wound vac on the rt for 7-8 weeks, followed by an additional 8-9 weeks of wet-to-dry dressing.  The seroma pocket had to be packed with iodoform gauze for 16 weeks until it finally healed.  My scars looked horrible for a while there, but now they have faded. Unfortunately, I lost all the recon and I look like a pot-bellied old man.  

On the bright side, I contacted the doctors at NOLA (Center for Reconstructive Breast Surgery) and they are positive they can fix this mess. I have fired my PS and I'm trying to figure out when I want to have the reconstruction done. Of course, I'd love to have it done NOW, but it's looking more like sometime in the winter or next fall. We shall see. I know one thing--I am sick of looking like this!

You might see if you can get hyperbaric chamber treatment to accelerate your wound healing, particularly in light of the wound vac situation. I would also discuss some supplementation with bromelaine and zinc, possibly arnica - all are potentially beneficial for healing. Also, try to ingest 100g of protein daily - it is a lot, but it helps your body heal itself. Red meat, chicken, pork, fish, eggs, cheese, Greek yogurt, nuts, fortified cereal are all good sources, as is protein powder added to smoothies. Good luck!

Slam some protein drinks. Most of them are nasty and chalky, but they get the job done. The carbs make the bacteria fat and sassy, so do try to limit them if you can.

Tereslg,

I had the same problem you are having. I was healing well, then those darn triangle openings happened. My PS said it was very common. My chemo was delayed, MO said it might end up being too late for chemo by the time they healed. I had some sleepless nights and spent hours looking online for suggestions. I ended up taking Juven supplements twice a day, just in case. It's expensive, and I don't really know that it helped. I was eating plenty of protein and vegetables at the time, so the supplement was probably unnecessary. One thing that seemed to make a huge difference for me was to stop taking the prescription NSAID I was taking daily for arthritis pain. I found an article online that said that surgical wounds in the late healing stage need inflammation. The NSAID was blocking inflammation and slowing the healing. When I stopped the piroxicam I started seeing healing withing 24 hours. It was amazing how fast the wounds closed then, I was taking pictures and could see a difference every 12 hours. My PS and MO both thought it was just a coincidence, but wanted to mention it in case it might applies to you. I hope you heal soon!

Teresig,

I find it disconcerting that it was blamed on blood supply without a cause identified, and even more so that your surgeon does not communicate well in the face of a complication. Smoking, poorly controlled diabetes, morbid obesity (not just being overweight) or a vasculopathy can indeed contribute to poor wound healing. But those factors should be identified and addressed as part of your consent to surgery

Plus smokers and patients with diabetes etc have surgery everyday and most of their wounds heal.

SpecialK suggestions are excellent.

My only other thought is - have you thought about or are you in a position to seek a second opinion?

😊🌷