YAY! Port removal.

Congrats! I was so happy to get mine out as well. It bothered me the entire time I had it. The medical team thought it might be hitting a nerve.

I think we all want to be back to normal! I have a feeling we won't see normal for a long time though..... And, it's going to be a different normal....

Love and Hugs,

Cindi

Quilter_1 said:

Hi Cindi,  my port never

Hi Cindi,  my port never really bothered me, getting it flushed was sometimes inconvient. It did it's job, and, I'm really glad that I had it, but it's job is done.  I hope that I never have to have another one put in.  I feel great and have been getting good checkups and scans and am hopeful that this chapter of my life is closed forever.

I was happy to see someone report on their port removal.  I hated it and always felt it on me.  Even now after its removal I can feel it and the scar it left.  It was such a reminder of my disease that I could not wait to get it out.  I had it removed just a few months after my last chemo. I know they wanted me to wait a bit but I felt like that meant I was waiting for a recurrence.  So I had it removed.  I hope this is the last of it.  I don't know why it bothered me so much but it did.

Maxster said:

Glad to hear the news

I was happy to see someone report on their port removal.  I hated it and always felt it on me.  Even now after its removal I can feel it and the scar it left.  It was such a reminder of my disease that I could not wait to get it out.  I had it removed just a few months after my last chemo. I know they wanted me to wait a bit but I felt like that meant I was waiting for a recurrence.  So I had it removed.  I hope this is the last of it.  I don't know why it bothered me so much but it did.

 

Maxster, yes! That's it exactly. Leaving it in, for me, feels like waiting for a recurrence.          

I remember when you had it put in! How time flies, and what a blessing we are all here to celebrate with you.

I had mine removed in December, doctor's orders.  It never bothered me a bit - never knew it was there, and liked going to see everyone at hem/onc when I got it flushed.  But got a new doc and she said, "out it comes."  The doc who removed it was unfortunately not as skillful as the one who put it in, and I ended up with a massive hematoma. I was the darkest shade of purple you could imagine from my neck down to include my whole breast and over to the middle of my chest.  It took months to go away and I still have a small lump under the incision and a very bumpy scar. I kind of wish I had just kept the port!

Hooray!

I am looking forward to the day my oncologist says I can have the port removed.  It has been in there for a year and I have to get it flushed every 6 weeks and now with COVID19 they do a nasal swab every time I go in and I hate that more thatn everything else.  Does anyone know how they remove the port it is an outpatient surgery are you asleep I cannot recall how it was put in I want it out thanks

vrsecond said:

Port

I am looking forward to the day my oncologist says I can have the port removed.  It has been in there for a year and I have to get it flushed every 6 weeks and now with COVID19 they do a nasal swab every time I go in and I hate that more thatn everything else.  Does anyone know how they remove the port it is an outpatient surgery are you asleep I cannot recall how it was put in I want it out thanks

As Molly10 said, it varies by hospital and doctor. I had my port taken out 18 months after chemo because it hadn't been put in the right place originally and was starting to move down my chest wall. I had numbing only, no other sedation or anxiety drugs, and chatted with the surgeon removing it the whole time he worked. It was easy, no pain, healed quickly, and I was very glad to have it out. I hope yours is this easy whenever the time comes!

Molly110 said:

Port removal varies from

Port removal varies from medical center to medical center. Some use "twilight sedation" as a matter of course. Some use no sedation and only numb the area. Some decide what to do through a discussion between the doctor and patient. I wish all did the latter. Unfortunately, mine offers only the numbing with no sedation, and I've delayed having my port removed as a result. 

My advice would be to ask for what you want and advocate for it. There was a recent discussion on the board about ports, and many women reported that their port removal was a snap. If your doctor wants you to keep your port for a while longer, you can ask about having it flushed less often. Due to covid, my cancer center delayed my flush for weeks, which they told me was perfectly safe. I looked it up, and there are good studies that say 3 months is fine. You could ask your doctor about those specific studies and see if you can get your schedule changed. 

Thank you for the reply. I did ask her she said she likes to leave the port in for a year from last pet scan which means June 2021 so I am bummed.  Yes I delayed the flush because it is a hassle every 4-6 weeks and they do the nasal swab for covid every time and that is more annoying than the flush.  I guess it is a psychological thing with me Ijust want it out but she suggests leaving it in oh well

I had my port removed after it became infected. I was only able to use it one time - the day after it was inserted. Finally, after trying for months to clear up the infection, they removed it with a numbing agent. Problem was, the skin around it was so degraded because of the infection, they couldn't get it closed. A half-hour procedure turned into a long afternoon as they tried to get it to stop bleeding. Long story short, six weeks after going to a wound care specialist, they got the infection cleared up but I have an awful scar. I've thought of having some plastic surgery to fix it because it still causes me pain but I'm afraid. File this under "if anything could go wrong, it will." LOL

Love,

Eldri