I recall that surgery on a lactating breast was discussed maybe a year ago,
but a search of the archives has not turned anything up.  Do any of you have
some information that might help this woman?  She is tandem nursing a 2 year
old and one that is only a couple of months old.


"Here is the problem. I have a lump in my right breast. I found it in
December, and at the time my doctor thought it was a cyst/plugged duct
kind of thing, so I was pretty much trying to massage it out, use heat,
etc. By March, she thought we needed to investigate it further. The two
ultrasounds I've had have ruled out the possibility of it being a cyst or
abscess. Malignancy is "unlikely, but not excluded". Gee, thanks.

Up next is a needle biopsy tomorrow.

"Best" case scenario is that the pathologist can confirm that it's
benign, which allows us to leave the lump and just monitor it carefully
over the next several months.

If they can't confirm that, the surgeon wants to excise it -
understandable since the incidence of breast cancer is 1 in 9 in a
woman's lifetime. However, the complications possible from performing
surgery on a lactating breast is that milk drainage will prevent the
incision from healing properly. If anyone knows the likelihood of this
being a REAL problem, I'd appreciate hearing about it.

I need to know if there is a way to dry up one breast while still feeding
off another. I feel I could produce enough milk from one side to feed
Stasha. I could live with the possibility of having to wean Theo, but the
thought of having to wean Stasha is inconceivable and heartbreaking to
me.

In the event of the worst case scenario - what is the possibility of
relactating after surgery?"

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