Surgical scars and breast pain

A family member had breast cancer 17 years ago and is now having severe pain in her breast from worsening scar tissue. Are there any effective treatments to reduce painful scar tissue? Severe pain is unusual this many years after surgery for breast cancer. Your family member should see her doctor to be evaluated for the cause of the pain. Her physician should make sure there are no signs of breast cancer recurrence or evidence of a new cancer. He or she should also conduct an appropriate examination and workup to rule out other potential causes of her pain.

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This is called post-mastectomy pain syndrome PMPS because it was first noticed in women who had mastectomies, but it can also happen after other types of breast-conserving surgery such as a lumpectomy. Pain may also be felt in the shoulder or surgical scar. Other common complaints include: numbness, shooting or pricking pain, or unbearable itching.

Even though breast pain is common, experiencing it can be alarming, especially if your mind immediately jumps to the fact that it's a symptom of breast cancer. While that's sometimes true, there are many other potential and more likely causes, both that stem from issues inside your breast such as a breast cyst or hormone-related breast tenderness as well as outside your breast such as chest wall injury or muscle spasm. Breast pain may feel sharp or dull and be intermittent or constant, mild or severe. To get to the bottom of things, your doctor will need to conduct a detailed medical history, physical examination, and possibly imaging tests.