Can lymphedema cause shortness of breath?

MeToo, yes, that's a possibility. But it would be more likely if your lymphedema was affecting your abdomen as well as your breast/chest, which it may well be, especially if you have not been treating it. Weight gain can also add to the effects of lymphedema, which is often a consideration for us after breast cancer treatment.

I hear you on being "used to it," but unfortunately that's not the whole story. Lymphedema is a progressive condition which can be slowed, maybe even stopped, with treatment. Without treatment, progression in lymphedema may or may not mean greater swelling, but the real damage is done in the affected tissues, with excess fat deposition, fibrosis, and eventually skin changes, even including leakage through the skin of caustic lymph fluid.

In other words, it's time to find yourself a well-trained lymphedema therapist with experience in treating truncal (breast/chest/back) lymphedema. Here's information about how truncal lymphedema is treated:

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

And here's how to find a qualified therapist near you:

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

Please do consider getting help promptly. A lymphedema therapist will be able to tell you if the lymphedema is contributing to your shortness of breath, and help you get this comfortably under control. Any doctor on your team can write a referral. Keep us posted, please!

Gentle hugs,
Binney

Your post sounds like I wrote it! I have complained of shortness of breath for a long time. I have had chest ct's and been sent to both pulmonary specialist and heart specialist andpassedboth with flying colors!

Is your still a problem, and is it more exercise induced?