Developed a hematoma after my lumpectomy

No, you developed a hematoma because $#*+ happens. Some of us get seromas, some hematomas. It's the luck of the draw, where your tumor & nodes were, the size of the breast relative to the incision, your general ability to heal, and the general characteristics of your blood and tissues and how they respond locally to surgery. That’s how your particular body reacts to injuries—and surgery is an injury.

NONE of the behaviors you describe having done have ANY bearing on what complications you suffered after surgery. You did the one thing—avoiding straining your arm and upper body--designed to prevent complications, so you did the right thing.

All that cardio-exercise activity? No effect except to keep you supple, your spirits strong, your heart healthy and your strength up. And it will make your treatment easier for your system to handle. That wine “binge" (which different people define different ways) might have added a pound or two or kept you from losing it. Or not.

You did not “mess up." You got a hematoma because you would have gotten one anyway no matter what.

I am here to agree with Chi and the others! I got one too, but I am surprised they packed yours.They were reluctant to even drain mine once, which they did, there really wasn't that much fluid, just a big lovely green black blue and brown and yellow color, changing over time. I did have a seroma in my axilla, which they would NOT touch, I guess because of fear of infection, but that hematoma was HUGE, and persistent! it lasted forever, I wish I would have taken pictures. What did piss me off, was them asking,'what did you DO'?!?!. I didn't 'DO' anything. I read quite a bit about it at that time, and it really is random.

I got an enormous hematoma after LX, for no good reason. My whole breast turned black. My B.S. drained about 10-oz of blood off it. Yikes!

Then I had to have re-excision for margins and darned if that cavernous space didnt full up with fluid, causing a seroma. She drained 15-oz off the seroma over the course of two weeks. This doesnt even count all the fluid that gushed out the three times it broke open on its own. What a mess!

And then, after I had a BMX, dang it! Another huge seroma on the OTHER side that took 16 weeks to heal.

The common denominator is...nothing. I did nothing to cause the hematoma or seromas. I don't know why they happened and neither does my surgeon. Just bad luck.

Don't beat yourself up about something you can't control.

Meredithcope, welcome to BCO. You may want to start a new topic with your question, as we see this topic hasn't been active in quite awhile.

Have the doctors suggested anything to you to manage the fluid? Have they called it a seroma (http://www.breastcancer.org/treatment/side_effects...)?

Probably worth getting it looked at again soon, to see what they can do to help you.

My surgeon offered a washout, which just the name of freaked me out a little. truthfully, more than a little. That was after one needle draining. I refused. Ew. It took several months, but the fluid finally did resorb, I guess. Some doctors don't like to do needle aspiration, because of the risk of infection, so they say. Some other I've read about here on BCO don't mind at all, they are pretty careful today with sterile techniques. I hope it all turns out ok for you.

I got the same comment. "What did you do?" I did nothing but follow directions of wearing your sports bra, apply ice, limit movement of that arm. I thought all the bruising was post op surgical bruising. Perhaps a slide show on the progression of NORMAL bruising and NOT NORMAL bruising should be shown. Giving it another week...hopefully it will go down and i wont need and drains.