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I m a seventy year old man and had a mastectomy performed a year ago. Since that time I have had radiation treatment (30) performed and shortly after that I was found to have peripheral T-Cell lymphoma and am having chemo treatments for that and was found to have shingles during that continuing treatment. Upon completion of the mastecomy I was given printed material by a nurse that tated that I should not have blood drawn, blood pressure taken or any other procedure that would break the skin on the arm on the side that I had the mascetomy. Okay. How long should I avoid punctures and cuffing of that arm.
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Thank you for your informative answer.
March 29, 2011 - 12:51pmThis Comment
Hi trailman,
Thank you for your post and welcome! When you have a mastectomy performed, lymph nodes are removed. Because of this, you must take precaution and inform health care providers about your mastectomy so that blood pressure is not taken and blood is not drawn from that arm. The reason for this is that the lymph nodes protect our body from illnesses and infections and if they are no longer present, taking BP and having blood drawn can cause fluid accumulation and infection. To answer your question, once you have had a mastectomy you can never have blood drawn, shots given, or blood pressure taken from whichever side the mastectomy is on. Always remember to inform your nurses and health team about your mastectomy.
Take Care and Best Wishes!
Rosa
March 25, 2011 - 4:20amThis Comment