Excessive fluid after lymph node removal

@susanmfc
I will let you know on Monday .
Thanks.

@susanmfc I had surgery on September 16 2025. I got the infection on Jan 25th. I was on antibiotic for 10 days. It was better after a couple of days. Drain tube was in for one week. I'm doing well now. Good luck to you.

@ewhit802 Hi. Can you explain what the gauze wick was? My seroma is on week 5 and doesn’t seem to be getting worse but also not better. I’m wearing compression 24/7. It’s been drained once. Thank you.

@keywestsj Thanks for the info. Were you using a compression dressing the whole time you had the seroma and did you have radiation at all?
Glad you’re doing well now.

Yes, I had radiation for 4 weeks. No compression dressing. I'm doing well, thank you. God bless you on your journey to good health.

@susanmfc I ended up at the ER because the area was red and swollen and uncomfortable and folks at urgent care were uneasy about it. ER doc made small incision, did her best to get the fluid out, then stuffed a gauze strip in the opening into the wound, which stayed in for several days. It literally wicks the acclimating fluid build up out of the wound. It was a bit messy (wore bandages over it) and it didn’t completely fix things but the area finally started to heal after that. Sorry. It’s a bit gross to describe. Does that help?

Thank you … yes helpful. Sounds pretty scary. I’m glad it all turned out ok. Did they put you on antibiotics too?

@susanmfc Yes. Forgot to mention that part. 10 day course of Antibiotics. It was surprising to me because it happened weeks after the surgery. The wound culture came back negative but they thought I had cellulitis (skin infection). It delayed my start to radiation (which was fine) cuz they wanted the area to be healing. It’s all perfectly fine now; just very uncomfortable at the time. I hope you find some relief!

@ewhit802 Thanks for the added info. I’m actually feeling good. The seroma feels better in the am than pm but at its worst it’s only mildly achy/annoying. No redness or skin irritation and the incision is perfectly healed up. Just the fluid firmness pushing /aches by the end of the day. I do think it’s going down ever so s l o o o w ly. Thanks again for all the info. Glad you’re good now!

Yes! That was my main discomfort too! I had my surgery (double mastectomy) a little over a year ago and I still have some fluid build up under my arm from where the lymph nodes were removed. I had mine drained twice and was getting it drained a 3rd time when my surgeon said I should keep the fluid there - that it would help the plastic surgeon. (Like another poster said, I couldn’t feel it when he drained it - at all.)
I met with the plastic surgeon last week and he commented that I still had some fluid. I told him what my breast surgeon said, and my plastic surgeon replied “it isn’t much fluid” and just looked kind of confused about what my surgeon said! 😂 I’m going to mention it again when I go back bc I’m just curious at this point!
Anyway! I have 2 bras that I wear all the time (even to bed) that hold the fluid in (they aren’t really compression bras but work that way for me). I just bought a few different ones in a couple sizes until I found what I liked and then bought a few of them. I sleep in them bc they take away that feeling I get from the fluid being there. Im looking forward to not sleeping in a bra again one day but for now it’s how I feel the most “normal.” I have 2 bras that I have really loved for this problem. One pulls over (no snaps or anything) and the other has front snaps (more like plastic hook and eye closers) but works the same way. I bought mine from an online store called Truekind. I believe the pullover one is called a bralette and the front closer one is called a daily comfort posture bra. You can get these styles from lots of places but this company is affordable and very good quality. Now as far as feeling like I had cancer?!? I was feeling so healthy when I was diagnosed with cancer that I was in a kind of shock for a while. My surgeon and nurse laughed at/with me one day and I was just so confused and kept saying but I feel so good?! He said that it’s a myth that early breast cancer has pain as a side effect. I almost felt guilty because people kept asking how I was feeling and, other than a couple weeks after each chemo treatment, I felt (and still feel) great! Best of luck to you! Stay positive, exercise when possible, eat right, and pray (if you’re a prayer). I’ll be praying for you! You got this!!