Underarms different after surgery?

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Guenhwyvar
Guenhwyvar Member Posts: 18
edited December 2017 in Surgery - Before, During, and After

I've been searching online and can't find any info anywhere, so maybe it's just me. Since my surgery, my armpits seem stretched and I have to shave a much longer area than before. Has anyone else noticed that their armpits are different? I hate the way they look now.


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  • OCDAmy
    OCDAmy Member Posts: 873
    edited December 2017

    Oh I hate my armpit! I had an ALND and I have this big dent between expander and pit with a ridge in between. The PS thinks it may be scar tissue and says she can fix it when I have exchange surgery. I hope so!

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  • beach2beach
    beach2beach Member Posts: 996
    edited December 2017

    The scars under the armpit I notice more. Kind of sinks in.

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  • dtad
    dtad Member Posts: 2,323
    edited December 2017

    Hi everyone...yes, my underarms are very different than they were before surgery !

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  • gb2115
    gb2115 Member Posts: 1,894
    edited December 2017

    mine was sunken for awhile after surgery, but that eventually went away

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  • grandma3X
    grandma3X Member Posts: 759
    edited December 2017
    I no longer have to shave my armpits and rarely use deodorant anymore (no hair and no odor). It could be because I’m on an AI, but in any case, I count this as a plus :).
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  • Justme111
    Justme111 Member Posts: 3
    edited December 2017

    hello

    I just joined tonight. Very interesting and helpful website. I am having both breasts removed next week, a recurrence in the left breast after 20 years and I decided just to have them both removed. I’m fine with that. But I read something about be sure to have the surgeon remove the arm flaps. Can anyone help me with that? I did not know to do that. Thank you

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  • Spookiesmom
    Spookiesmom Member Posts: 9,568
    edited December 2017

    My ROs nurse said I wouldn’t sweat on the ca side cuz of nodes removed. And I don’t sweat on the non ca side either, I had BMX. There is about 3 hairs on right. None of my hair came back normally after chemo.

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  • coraleliz
    coraleliz Member Posts: 1,523
    edited December 2017

    My armpits are deep caves following my BMX. Difficult to shave. I have to pull the skin to the side. My BS tells be it's because the mammary tail previously filled in this area. The lower 35% of my armpit no longer grows hair due to RADs. My pits have definitely returned to their smelly, if untreated, state.

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  • Peregrinelady
    Peregrinelady Member Posts: 1,019
    edited December 2017
    Justmee111, the arm flaps are sometimes called dog ears and can be extra skin left over from surgery. Whether or not you want reconstruction, you need to ask your breast surgeon about what to expect cosmetically. There are many threads on mastectomy and reconstruction that you might want to check out.
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