Post #34- All I Want For Xmas Is A Port and Some Chemo On The Side

LOL...laughter is good for the soul.. I am scheduled for surgery to get my port in on 12/19 and I start Chemo on 12/22. All I'll probably be doing this Christmas is sucking on a candy cane for nausea, lol. I won't have to worry about those extra holiday pounds this year. Seriously, it is the best gift I ever had because it is The Gift Of Life. I have to look for the positive because I have been in a roller coaster funk these last few days. Not just about the chemo about a lot of things. I am learning not to sweat the small or large stuff very, very, slowly but I am doing it.

Now what is a port you may ask. Well your teacher on all things cancer will answer it for you, lol. I'm going to have my port in for a quite a while. My veins are small and they can no longer take blood from my left arm due to the mastectomy. So me and my port will be buddies for a long time to come. I'm averaging about a surgery a month since October, lol.....As long as I am good and sleep we will be fine. The nurse said they will put me out so, I say let's do the damn thing. Here's the port information.

Implantable ports (sometimes called portacaths or subcutaneous ports)

An implantable port is a thin, soft, plastic tube that is put into a vein in your chest (will be in my chest) or arm and has an opening (port) just under the skin. This allows medicines to be given into the vein or blood to be taken from the vein.

The tube is long, thin and hollow, and is known as a catheter. The port is a disc about 2.5–4cm (1–1½ in) in diameter. The catheter is usually inserted (tunnelled) under the skin of your chest. The tip of the catheter lies in a large vein just above your heart ( Just hearing that scares the hell out of me, in my heart vein, AWWWWWW) and the other end connects with the port which sits under the skin on your upper chest. The port will show as a small bump underneath your skin, which can be felt but is not visible on the outside of your body.

What they are used for

A port can be used to give you treatments such as chemotherapy, blood transfusions, high-calorie liquids, or antibiotics. Ports can also be used when it is necessary to take samples of your blood for testing. This makes it possible for you to have your treatment without the need to frequently put needles into veins in your arms.

You can go home with the port in and it can be left in place for weeks, months or, for some people, years. A port may be very useful if doctors or nurses find it difficult to get needles into your veins, or if the walls of your veins have been hardened by previous treatment. A port is more discreet than a central line or PICC line because it lies completely under the skin and has no external parts.

How the port is put in

Your port will be put in at the hospital by a surgeon or a radiologist. It is usually done in the operating theatre or an area called the vascular radiology unit. It can be put in either under a general anaesthetic or a local anaesthetic.

Before your surgery you may find it helpful to discuss the position of the port on your chest with the surgeon.

You will have a small needle put into a vein in your arm or hand and you will be given medicine to help you to relax. The doctor will inject a local anaesthetic into your skin to numb a couple of small areas on your chest and neck. After this you may be aware of activity around you and may feel some pressure on your chest (or arm) during the procedure, but you should not feel any pain.

You will have one or two small incisions (cuts in your skin). If the port is put into your chest vein the incision on your upper chest will be about 3–4 cm long and is where the port is placed. There will be a smaller incision above this, which is usually less than 1–2 cm (½–1 in) long. The catheter will be put into a vein in your chest. It will then be tunnelled under the skin from the lower chest incision to the incision above. The catheter is then attached to the port, which is fitted into a space created under the skin. The incisions are then stitched. If the stitches are not dissolvable they will be removed after about 7–10 days, when the wound has healed.
If the port is put into a vein in your arm the wound will be on the inner side of your arm.
You may also have a chest x-ray to make sure the port is in the right place.

A small dressing may be used to cover the wounds for a day or so after the procedure. The nursing team will teach you how to look after this.

You may feel a bit sore and bruised for a few days after the port is put in. A mild painkiller such as paracetamol will help with this.

Immediately after the port has been put in, and for a few days afterwards, check for any redness, swelling, bleeding, bruising, pain or heat around the wounds. Let your hospital doctor know straight away if you have any of these signs as you could have an infection, which may need to be treated.

How it is used

The port can be used soon after it has been put in, if necessary. When you are about to have treatment or have a blood sample taken, the skin over the port will be numbed with an anaesthetic cream which will be put on about half an hour beforehand. The skin will then be cleaned.

A special needle, known as a Huber needle, is used to push through the skin and into the port (see diagram, above). This should not be painful but you may feel a pushing sensation.
The Huber needle connects with the catheter, allowing treatment to be given directly into the bloodstream. Blood samples can also be taken in this way if needed. If you are having a short treatment, the needle will then be withdrawn. For longer treatments, a dressing will be taped over the needle to hold it in place until the end of the treatment, when it will be removed.

Care of your implantable port

After each treatment a small amount of fluid is ‘flushed’ into the catheter so that it does not become blocked. The port will need to be flushed every four weeks if it is not being used regularly. The nurses at the hospital may teach you (or a friend or relative) to do this for yourself if you feel able to, or a district nurse can do it for you at home. Apart from this, your port will not need any care at all.