Painless port access

Glow
Glow Member Posts: 41
edited March 2014 in Breast Cancer #1
Hello. Perhaps this is not news to some of you but I just discovered that there is a cream you can put on your port or a venous site that numbs the area and makes access or venipunctue TOTALLY PAINLESS!!! It is called EMLA. You put the cream on the area and cover the area with plastic wrap about 1-2 hours before treatment. The cream numbs the area and makes access completely painless. It is expensive-about $42 per tube but has recently been produced generically about $12-$15 (my insurance covered the cost). I was amazed that the nurses and doctors at NYU were not aware of this product. You will need a prescription. Please educate your doctor if he/she does not already know about it. Make sure you are not allergic to lidocaine. Love and prayers to all of you!

Comments

  • tulip66
    tulip66 Member Posts: 32
    #2
    I have been using lidocaine for about 4 months now and I can't tell you how happy I am that I do. With weekly treatments it makes a difference.
    The only thing I can add to what you said is that I get mine prescription free. It is called L-M-X4. It is the same as EMLA and costs about $12.00 a tube. You just ask your pharmacist for it and they usually have some behind the counter. I cut small pieces of that new gladwrap with the sticky side face down over a squirt of the stuff. You only need to leave it on for 1/2 hour before access. Otherwise your skin can get red and irritated if kept on longer.

    I'm glad you brought this up! I didn't think to let people know - I assumed everyone knew!
  • shemiya
    shemiya Member Posts: 17
    #3
    I never had any pain with my port. They always put something on mine at the cancer center. I thought it was always painless. you learn something new every day. I thought they were cleaning the site before puncture.
  • marbleslab
    marbleslab Member Posts: 24
    #4
    It is amazing that there is a cream out there that takes care of the pain, and the doctors don't take the time or make the effort to remember to tell patients about it. It makes all the difference in the world. My son is a resident in Albuquerque, and I asked him why the doctors don't tell the patients about the cream. He said that a needle stick isn't that big a deal to them, it's not THEIR skin that is being poked through, and if someone forgets to put on the cream, they don't want to wait for them to do that. Anyway, I tell all newly diagnosed breast cancer patients I know about it. Thank goodness it is available!!!!!!
    Marla

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