Dealing with Lobectomy

After reading all of these comments - I want to walk away while I can and not have surgery!  I think in this case ignorance is bleas.  I'm in phase 1 or 2 of lung cancer - upper left lobe.  I go to surgeon next week to see if he will do surgery or chemo. I was rooting for surgery but now I'm not sure.  After hearing how everyone still has pain and it was unbearable - I just don't know what to do.

Hi Everyone, 

My name is Brandon and I had my upper rightlobe removed about 15 weeks ago and I have some pretty serious pain in the middle of chest, ribs, my back , and my incision area hurts and is numb.

The weird thing is that it's like I can literally feel excatly where they cut me and where they repaired my brochial tube and I am in some serious pain escpecially after working out. I am only 33 so my doctor tells me my road to recovery might be a little longer (up to 18 months) jsut because I was in shape and dont have the fat build up..

Has anyone else experienced this?? all my scans have been clear, well as of 6 weeks ago...

Brandon.Summers said:

Chest Pain After Lobectomy - Cancer Removed

Hi Everyone, 

My name is Brandon and I had my upper rightlobe removed about 15 weeks ago and I have some pretty serious pain in the middle of chest, ribs, my back , and my incision area hurts and is numb.

The weird thing is that it's like I can literally feel excatly where they cut me and where they repaired my brochial tube and I am in some serious pain escpecially after working out. I am only 33 so my doctor tells me my road to recovery might be a little longer (up to 18 months) jsut because I was in shape and dont have the fat build up..

Has anyone else experienced this?? all my scans have been clear, well as of 6 weeks ago...

Hi Brandon,

I had pain for many months after my lung resections. My doctor did several nerve blocking cuts to make the pain less intense, but once those nerves started growing back I felt the pain but the other pain had healed so when the blocked healed it wasnt as bad. I can only imagine how bad it would have hurt all at once if she didnt do the blockers.  I remembered feeling the side of my chest and my skin felt like a stranger. It didnt feel like my skin, it was numb. That slowly went away within 6 months

I had a left upper lobectomy and lymph nodes resection on 9/12/16.  I still have some pain and some shortness of breath, but not bad.  I'm walking 1.5 - 2.0 miles a day, either outside or on a treadmill.  I also climb two flights of stairs several times a day.  Periodically, I have to use an inhaler, but have been "satting" in the high 90's since coming home.  I, too, have the tugging sensations from my surgical incisions. I had hand assisted robotic surgery, so I only have 4 incisions, counting the drain tube one.  I try to take a nap every afternoon, simply because it makes me feel better.  I'm supposed to be sleeping at a 30 degree angle, but find I'm more comfy on my tummy. As far as bras go....I haven't worn one since I took the one off before my surgery.  My incisions are placed where it is going to be difficult to wear one until everything is completely healed and all the nerves have quit zinging me! 

This was a second primary cancer for me.  I was dx'd with Chromophobe Renal Cell Carcinoma stage 3a in April, 2013, and now Adenocarcinoma of the lung.  I don't have a path report yet, so don't know what is in front of me, but I'll handle it whatever it is.  Good luck to all of you.  This, contrary to what was told to me, is NOT a  walk in the park....but it IS a walk somewhere. 

grammy said:

I had lower right lobe removed 9 months ago. I no longer have any pain. Do you have NSCLC or SCLC? I have had chemo before and after surgery, then 35 radiation. My biggest problem is cough which seems to be getting better with use of inhaler. Did you have any lymph node involvement? Good luck and keep your chin up.
Grammy

I was so glad to read that you no longer have pain. I had a massive drain tube inserted during surgery and it was removed a couple of weeks later. I have had pain in my right shoulder blade ever since. Some days are ok but others are living hell. I had small cell neuroendocrine CA graded 2.2 B+

I'm new here and thought I would just look into what others have went through. I am now 5 months post VATS Lobectomy with my right lower and middle lobes removed due to adenocarcinoma. It was an early detection subsequent to a scan of my bladder and kidneys from a couple of other issues.  I felt great until surgery and then all hell broke loose. A week after the initial lobectomy, I suffered from a pneumothorax (collapsed lung) with chest tubes inserted and then a week after that I had a lung blood clot with an IVC filter placed and then MRSA while in the hospital. I was having infusions twice a day of antibiotics for over a month until infection cleared. I started Chemo therapy every three weeks for five hours each session of Cisplatin and Alimta and looking forward to my last session next week. I was told that I have a 50% chance of the cancer returning.I was offered and opted to go into a Clinical Trial which the doc said they were having some great success with the new drug.

I was very active before surgery and started pushing myself to walk three times a day which I got up to a little over a mile each time. At first it was really tough with having to stop and collect my breath and then go again. I started on an illiptical machine a few weeks ago which is a wake up call for how out of shape I have become. I used to be able to go about 30 - 40 minutes and now I am lucky to go a whole 3 minutes before I am totally wasted.  I try and do some excercise every morning and it mostly consists of walking in figure 8's due to space in the house with the bad weather. I still have pain when I take a deep breath at the bottom right side of my ribs but hoping this will lessen in time. It helps to read that others are also having the same issues. I am not alone. 

barbebarb said:

Lobectomy recovery=walk, walk, walk!
I have read all these posts and to sum it up it sounds like walk wake walk to work out these pains and heal!
Any other advice?
I also have lidocaine strips I cm cut and place over my ribs......

Hello!  I had a right upper lobectomy on 12/12/16.  I am now doing Tai Chi one day a week and gentle water exercise, as well as a Zumba Gold class at the "Y".   I'll get walking more as soon as we get better weather!  (I'm in Syracuse, NY.)  I admit I was in really good shape before my surgery.  I'm a lifetime non-smoker and I eat healthfully. I'm taking gabapentin for the nerve pain below my right breast and wrapping around to the side.  And a good nap every afternoon!  I'm female and 63 years old.  

Hello, recently my mom (48) got diagonsed with Non small lung cancer Stage 2. She will go under surgery on 25.03.17. It would be open surgery (not VATS). I am very much worried thinking of is this surgery dangerous. Will she be cured at this stage and will she get back to her normal life.  Please give your inputs what you have been gone through. Thank you all.

Be always happy.

I had a lobectomy of lower left lobe Mon. Aug. 14, and am hoping to be sent home this Fri., Aug. 18.  So far, there's been much less discomfort than when I had a diaphragmatic hernia repair and when I had my knee replaced.  I already feel better without that diseased lobe.  They already verified that it was cancer, but I won't know the results of the full pathology report for a oouple more days.  Sorry that dosn't help with your question, Dave, but hopefully you'll hear from someone that knows.  God bless.

Chickapee said:

Lobectomy

seeing if you're still a member.

 

I had a right lobectomy on Aug 17, 2017.  Were you looking for support or questions?  I had benign carcanoid tumor in my bronchial tube.  The took my upper right lung.  I am doing very well, back to work.  I am still trying to figure out what my new normal is going to be.  Hope you are doing well.