Strange Skin Tenderness

By KayeD Monday, April 07, 2008

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Hello all!

I have another question...do any of you or have you, experienced a strange type of skin tenderness in your surgery areas?

I know nerves missfire and reconnect and there will be pain spasms. However, I've noticed that the area of complete dissection in my right armpit, passing along the underside of my right arm to my elbow, and also passing downward about half way down my side, is still numb (which I expect - I'm clumsy and have had LOTS of stitches), but oddly sensitive at the same time. It's a difficult sensation to describe. My skin is numb to the touch, but at the same time painful if I scratch or rub it deeply. My surgery was back in August. I tripped the other day and my son reached out to grab my upper right arm and I winced in pain at the pressure from his hand.

From all of the surgeries I've had in my life, including two c-sections, this is the strangest sensation I've ever experienced. Perhaps it's because so much tissue is removed during the lymph node dissection. I'm not sure.

My surgeon, like most, doesn't deal well with patients that are awake and talking (let's face it, surgeons rarely have bedside manner), and so his answers are incomplete at best. Perhaps no one really knows why this happens?

Wonder if any of you out there experience the same thing?

Thanks to all.

Kaye

Mortality and Other Issues

Comments (5) | Add comment

Maria Gifford, Editor

4/ 8/08 2:22am

Hi Kaye,

As always, great question. See:

When Does the Numbness Go Away?

http://www.healthcentral.com/breast-cancer/c/614/10372/comments/

The View from Six Years Out

http://www.healthcentral.com/breast-cancer/c/78/20581/view-years/

Be sure to scroll down through these SharePosts and their comments. The skin tenderness, numbness and tingling you're experiencing seems to be quite common.

Let me know if I can help you find other information. Glad to!

Take good care and write again soon,

Maria

PJ Hamel, Health Guide

4/ 9/08 6:40pm

I've got the same thing - armpit, down the underside of my arm, down my side... numb on the surface, but burning at the same time. Not very painful - more like a sunburn before it really starts to kick in and hurt. Weird, huh? You're not alone! (NONE of us here is alone, thanksfully...) - PJH

amy

11/ 5/08 11:36am

I recently had breast assymmtry surgery (10/9-08) and although I am only 4 weeks post op, I have the skin tenderness. I had my left breast reduced and a breast lift in both breasts. I have incisions under both breasts and around my nipples. My tenderness is with the incision but more so around the the incision area. I have been massaging vitamin E oil every day but the tenderness doesn't seem to let up. It is as if I have the worst sunburn in the world. Or if someone ran pins and needles all over my skin to torture me. I went to see my surgeon about this and she was very sympathetic (she is absolutely wonderful!) and explained that sometimes the nerve endings in surgeries like this forget to catch up (so to speak). She suggested I take a rough wash cloth and rub the area that is tender as much as I can, I guess to "wake up" the nerve endings and get the blood flowing. She also said I can use resinol, which is an ointment that my family has used since I was a kid. It is used for minor skin abrasions/irritations, etc...relieves pain/itching,etc... and also gave me some emla in case it gets really bad.

So I hope this helps someone out there. Luck to all.

Anonymous

4/17/09 5:13pm

I am three weeks past mastectomy with no lymph node removal other than a sentinel node biopsy. My skin has a burning sensation--not where incisions are--but where the adhesive must have been. I, too, have a whole numb ridge of tissue. Wearing a bra

is not comfortable but I wear one at work--seems to rub all day against this tender area. Any helpful ointments? Will this go away with time? Jeanie

KayeD

4/17/09 5:25pm

Hi Jeanne:

March 3 was my 1 year anniversary of finishing treatment. I still have sensitive and completely numb areas, again particularly in my armpit where the complete dissection was. My doctors tell me that while the nerves have been removed, along with all of the lymph nodes, sensitive skin occurs since tiny microscopic nerves, hair folicles, etc. are contained in the skin and rather "go crazy" due to the impact of the surgery.

I wore sports bras for some time after my surgery (a few months) because the skin was so tender, etc., then I wore them again when I was in radiation. My radiation oncologist prescribed quite a few EXCELLENT creams to help my poor skin during treatment.

If you're comfortable, try wearing sports bras (by the way, you're a rock star if you're already back at work after only 3 weeks! I was out for 6 weeks!) to protect that tender skin and give you some support and coverage, of course.

I did discover after this surgery, chemo and then radiation that now I am allergic to the adhesives used in bandages. After wearing even a simply bandaid, I have dime sized blisters where the adhesive was, plus, my skin is so sensitive that I bruise underneath the blisters! Just the way my body has reacted to all of this stuff!

Hang in there!

Strange Skin Tenderness

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