I wanted to to tell you more about the port they insert in my chest.
It's called a Port-a-cath and here is a picture of how it looks like.
There is also a picture of me before the surgery. They poked me so many times, it's not even funny, that's why I made a sad face!
The other two pictures are from my chest a day after the surgery. Most people say it's not that bad, but I think it's disgusting. I'm being completely honest and I'm sure not the one that likes to sugarcoat things. It hurts day and night, I can feel the metal, it freaks me out and on top of that it's bruised up now too! But I'm trying to look at it as my life saver. Let me explain why.
The portocath is installed beneath the skin. A catheter connects the port to a vain. Under the skin, the port has a septum through which drugs can be injected and blood samples can be drawn many times, usually with less discomfort for the patient than a more typical "needle stick".Chemotherapy is often toxic, and can damage skin and muscle tissue, and therefore should not be delivered through these tissues. Portacaths provide a solution, delivering drugs quickly and efficiently through the entire body via the circulatory system.
How does it feel like when you have one in your chest? Like you got shot with a gun. But don't worry, they give you pain meds so you don't feel it.
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