Port Placement

Port Placement was a pain. Now don't get me wrong in the beginning it was okay. For the procedure I was not put under, but very ALERT. I did not like it all. They gave me medicine to relax me and it worked for a little while. They rolled me to back in a surgery room. There were two people and it felt like a horror movie.
However, there was a blanket in front of me so I could not see anything. You will feel pressure from them cutting. In the beginning there was a little pain and I asked for more medicine so don't be afraid to ask. The next day and the whole week it hurt like HELLLLLL but after I was fine. The port is still sensitive at times because of the needle going in and out from the Chemo. Your oncologist will give you numbing cream (Lidocaine) to apply on the port before treatment. It worked for me in the beginning, but I did develop an allergy and it makes me itch which sucks. Now I use ice to numb it but it does not give the same effect as the cream. See instructions below on how to apply cream:





Apply cream 30 minutes before treatment with tub not hands. Make sure it's about a quarter size. Do not touch with hands.



Lay Cling Wrap on top of cream. It will stay there.



Once you get in the back, the nurse will wipe the cream off , attach the tub into your port and apply tape to hold in place.



Sit back and relax.