Unexpected pain

Hi Dawn,  same here hard lump above my scar about  3 inches long.  Surgeon said mine was a hematoma which he hoped would be re absorbed.  It is painful still but a heat pad is helping it disperse, my pain has stayed about the same since this has developed.  Maybe call your BC nurse they may have made a note of it when they saw you and definitely tell her your pain is worse.   I had bruising underneath that has mostly Cleared now, but the lump remains.  I’ve just called my BC nurse as I think my wound is infected.  

Hi Gardinia

thank you for your reply. I think I will call them in the morning. I hope you continue to recover swiftly. I shall also give a heat pad a go

Hi Dawn; I hope your BCN can help you, but I just wanted to say that you shouldn't be so hard on yourself expecting to be at 100% 5 weeks post-op. - it takes time.

Best wishes

Hi Dawn, I went in today and now have another dressing in place, the Dr told me not to use a heat pad and just leave it to disperse on its own.  Hope you got to speak to someone and get some advice x

I had similar after my lumpectomy and had quite bad bruising and a hematoma which was there when I saw my consultant  at the follow up appointment 3 weeks after operation. I needed a re excision and the consultant said she would clean it up and after re excision she put on more bandaging to prevent it happening again. There was a neater scar, no hepatoma or bruising after the re excision. The operation itself was shorter and recovery quicker so hopefully yours will be the same. I think it can take a long time to feel 100% so don’t be hard on yourself. X

Hi Dawn70, lovely responses already from the great folk here. My op was a much bigger deal than I’d expected. I’d had a lumpectomy for what had turned out to be a benign fibroadenoma about 15 years ago, tiny wound of about an inch and quick healing. This time round, long wound down the side of my breast as the surgeon accessed the lump and sentinel nodes from the same excision. 4 or 5 times longer than previously! Healed well in the end but big haematoma which seemed to take ages to resolve. Quite the rainbow boob with the bruising and blue dye! Having thought I’d be back to work (special needs teacher) in 2 weeks, I was actually off for 4 months! And although I fretted about the 10 week gap between op and rads, I was actually glad for the healing time. Not sure I could have faced it any sooner. 
So a long winded ramble to say it’s early days from my own experience. We all have different wound sizes and depths, all of which affects how quickly things heal and get back to nearer ‘normal’. And btw I’ve also returned to the breast clinic many times in between scheduled appointments and follow ups. Don’t ever hesitate to contact them if you’re not sure about anything, none of us are experts as to how things should look and feel. 
And always come here if you need to rant and rave! 
Sending love and a big but very gentle virtual hug, HFxx 

You guys are such a comfort. Thank you. I think I am feeling not quite as upbeat as I have previously. Perhaps the reality of cancer is kicking in? I hope you are all as well as you can be

I think that’s normal for a lot of people on here. Some days up and positive some days a struggle and feeling less upbeat. Judging from what I’ve read the ups and downs can last for ages - hopefully the ups outweigh the downs . Don’t be hard on yourself - we all need that extra support every so often. Take care