Well this post is going to jump ahead to present day. I guess for today we can consider the first two flashbacks like in a move, setting up for the present day story line. On November 9th I had a biopsy done of my melanoma to determine BRAF status. The original sample was lost from 2010. I was a little peeved but considering at the time BRAF was possibly still in phase I trails, if that, I am not to upset. Anyway, I had the biopsy in the doctors office and all was fine. No local was given as it was a type of punch biopsy using a new tool that is reminiscent of a tool used in bone marrow extraction. Reminds you of a barbeque lighter but with a hollow end. A type of disposable hollow needle is inserted in the end then into the area where the tumor is. The doctor presses a trigger and a the needle is sent in to the body, quickly to "grab" a sample then the tool is pulled out. Sounds painful right? Something that you would have at least a local anesthetic for? Well not me. Because of my previous surgeries I have significant sensory nerve damage in the exact area they were going into for a sample. I did not feel it go in at all but felt a quick, painful pinch, when the trigger was pulled. After it was done I did not feel the stitches or any real pain other than a muscle ache for the inflammation it of course caused. Everything was fine, stitches were removed a week later and the area looked well healed. There was lymphedema present but considering the circumstances it was to be expected. All was well.
Fast forward to November 30th. I was feeling pain, enough to take ibuprophen on a regular basis and then I noticed the area was not just swollen it was hot and red. Sure sign of infection. No external signs but I had been through this before with an infected injection site and knew if I was feeling pain, with all that nerve damage, others without would have been in the doctor's office days ago. I got myself to the ER and the doctor on call agreed with my assessment and ordered a sulfa based antibiotic as I am allergic to Penicillin. I knew the drill, no improvement in 24 -48 hours and go back but, within 12 hours the redness and heat were reduced by 75% and the swelling had receded somewhat. It was infection and it was a good thing I was paying attention.
The moral of the story here is if you do have nerve damage and secondary lymphedema it is imperative you pay attention. Pain is vital to your health, it tells you something is wrong and if you don't pay attention you can end up in real trouble. Those of us with nerve damage are at a disadvantage because we can't rely on pain to tell us we have to use our other senses to look for what pain should tell us. We are the center of our health care team and need to play our part or the game does not go well.
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