Lynn, <Of course, I wasn't surprised BUT was and am curious about whether the bleeding had anything to do with the involution/apoptosis process.> I personally doubt it, or we would see weaning mothers having more bleeding reports. I see I need to look up a more thorough explanation of "apoptosis", because I originally thought of a different meaning for that word. I think the involution process is slower in the immediate postpartum period than your client's situation. I envision involution as more of a process of reabsorption of the cell contents and sluffing off of the cell walls, which would not have a direct blood supply. The blood supply for an alveolus is from the basal membrane at the base of the cell, from which all necessary components are released into the cell. I think a more likely explanation would be a small polyp or two in the ducts, which is not uncommon, especially as we age. I think this is generally the explanation given for the "rusty pipe" syndrome sometimes seen. Full milk production must dilute it so it becomes invisible. Usually, the blood is going straight into the baby's mouth, and is unseen, so I get it happens more often than we know. Jean ********************* K. Jean Cotterman RNc, IBCLC Dayton, Ohio USA *********************************************** The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html