The health implications of mastectomy

There are many women that need to have a mastectomy performed in order to save their lives from cancer. The surgical removal of a breast in order to reduce the risk of cancer is a very serious procedure and can also have health consequences after the surgery. If you have a total mastectomy your entire breast will be removed and the nipple is also removed. With a subcutaneous mastectomy the doctor will leave the nipple intact but they will remove a large part of the breast tissue.

Having the breast partially or completely removed will mean you may need to have surgery to repair the breast or to have surgery to create a new breast. Bras are also helpful in padding the area and providing you with a complete figure once more.

Since removal of the breasts is a surgery, there is always the concern that you could develop serious health consequences like an infection after the surgery. An infection can be very dangerous as it will lead to extreme problems with your health. Removal of the breast also causes other problems for your health such as psychological issues because you experience a dramatic change in your body. Some women suffer from self-esteem problems as they feel their body image is not as beautiful or as attractive as it once was. They also lose the normal breast functions that they used to have and this may also lead to depression and other psychological problems.

There is no way to predict what tissues could become cancerous so when you have a mastectomy, it will be unknown if you will be able to be cancer free of it the surgery will be a success. So you can lose both of your breasts and still have to deal with cancer. Then there is the chance that the cells will never become cancerous and you will end up losing your breasts and cancer never occurred.

Some of the common side effects you may experience will include breast tightness. Since the lymph nodes underneath the armpits might also be removed you may also have pain and tightness under the arms and the shoulders as well. In addition to tightness you will also feel itching and throbbing under the arms and in the area where the breasts were removed. If the pain is intense or it continues on for a long time you should talk to your doctor about the pain to have them inspect the area to see if there is a large problem.

The other problem that occurs is called lymphedema. This is when you have swelling in the arms because the lymph nodes have been removed. Only about 15% of patients that have their lymph nodes removed will experience lymphedema and deal with painful swelling in the arms.

One other thing to be aware of is fluid collection. With fluid collection you will have a large amount of fluid that collects where the surgery was. Typically this fluid should reabsorb back into your system in a couple weeks after surgery but if it gets worse you should talk to your doctor immediately as they may need to drain it.

Every patient that has a mastectomy will experience a surgery scar. The surgery can take a long time and a lot of tissue will need to be removed and this can cause the scar to be very large. The doctor also plays a part in the appearance of the surgery scar. If the scar has an infection you must take antibiotics to cure it and your doctor may also need to work on drainage because pus is gathering below the scar.