Swelling underneath armpit—wraps around to back??

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kec1972
kec1972 Member Posts: 269
edited August 2020 in Surgery - Before, During, and After

Hi All, I am having a very strange thing happen and am wondering if it has happened to anyone else. I have a swelling/firmness about 4 inches below my armpit(where the bra strap sits) on my lumpectomy side. This firmness wraps around to my back. It almost seems like a large, firm area of muscle. Neither my GYN or my radiation doc had any clue what it is. I’m seeing my MO next week; if he doesn’t know either, I’m going to demand some imaging to check it out...anyone have anything similar

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  • cyathea
    cyathea Member Posts: 338
    edited August 2020

    kec1972, I’m sorry you are having this problem. I’m not a doctor and it is less likely with just a lumpectomy, but you may want to ask about lymphedema. LE is not only in the arms. I have it on my “trunk” area, under my arms and around my back on both sides due to a BMX

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  • LillyIsHere
    LillyIsHere Member Posts: 830
    edited August 2020

    Until you'll see your MO... does it hurt when you press on or when you move? Can be a muscle spasm. Since I had my BXM and I am under AI, some of my muscles have been looking and feeling strange.

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited August 2020

    I have truncal & breast Lymphadema. Most doc's either don't know about it or say pooh pooh. Lymphadema can come on any time up to 25 years - not just from surgery but from radiation too. I'd request a consult with a certified, trained LEPT. Here's a link with lots of good facts.

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


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  • kec1972
    kec1972 Member Posts: 269
    edited August 2020

    Thank you ladies for taking the time to reply. If it is in fact lymphedema, I’m quite surprised that my radiation doc did not recognize it! My other thought is, does it have to be treated if it is lymphedema? It’s not really bothering me, I just noticed it

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  • MinusTwo
    MinusTwo Member Posts: 16,634
    edited August 2020

    kec - There is a doctor at Stanford who detailed that the average education time or physicians in 7+ years of medical school about LE is 15 minutes. So no - you can't expect them to be on top of it. If it is LE - you would be smart to get measured & diagnosed and at least learn the potential problems. Yes, it can get worse & worse - and you could get cellulitis. Or maybe you'll be lucky like me and only have to wear a compressing bra 24/7 and not wear sleeves & gloves every day or wrap at night. I don't mean to scare you, but you really need to be on top of it.

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  • Abbidoodle
    Abbidoodle Member Posts: 41
    edited August 2020

    Hi Minus Two. I had a lumpectomy almost a year and a half ago. Because of so many misdiagnosis and I must say, no one taking the initiative to try and figure what was wrong, I am just now starting treatment with a lymphedema specialist. I too, have it in the breast and truncal area, as well as right under my collarbone. I had chemo and radiation but the lymphedema started right after my surgery. My problem is that about 80% has become very dense and fibrous. I'm now wearing compression bras and doing the manual drainage, but I'm wondering since it is so hard is there such a thing as this not working? I'm not looking for trouble, but am wondering if it's too late due to no treatment for so long. Would love to hear from anyone who has had treatment delayed this long. And by the way, it has been extremely painful this whole time.

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