background:  mom was diagnosed with breast cancer about 2 weeks before
first baby's birth.  Lumpectomy about a week before birth.  Birth and
early breastfeeding uneventful, nursing both sides.  Wider excision and
removal of lymph nodes at 2 1/2 weeks - all tissue samples clear.  Breast
very swollen and tender after surgery, w/ mom restricting nursing on that
side.  I suggested she encourage nursing on that side, to see if that
would help reduce edema. (Mom's surgery was in another city, so my contact
with her hasn't been constant.  That's now the baby's preferred side, but
she's again cutting back:  1 nursing that side to 2 nursings other side.

update:  Surgery was nearly 3 weeks ago.  Original plan of wide excision
followed by healing followed by 6 months of chemotherapy has been
reevaluated;  surgeon feels 7 weeks of radiation w/ no chemo will offer
nearly same longterm survival statistic in her case.  She's still debating
her course of action.  However, if she opts for radiation, she has to have
that breast healed and the drain out within 2 weeks.  Less swelling would
also be nice.

current status:  Even though surgery was nearly 3 weeks ago, breast is
still edematous (which surgeon feels is largely a result of disruption of
lymph system) and draining.  Drainage has gone from red to orange to
beige.  Now, @ 8 am the drain reservoir has about 40 cc of "yellowish,
clearish, slightly milky" drainage.  At 11 pm, reservoir has 60-80 cc of
milk w/ very slight "orangy/beigy tinge".  A soft lump under the incision
appeared 3 days ago;  she thinks it's a "milk abscess".  Only slightly
tender, not red.  One surgeon wants her to wean for fast healing;  she'll
see another tomorrow, but is considering temporary weaning and asked about
parlodel.

my suggestions:  It turns out she is, per instructions, exerting negative
pressure on the drain reservoir.  How about either clamping off the drain
for a few days or, at the very least, not sucking on it?  I told her if
*I* were milk - or any other fluid for that matter - I'd sure keep
draining as long as something kept suctioning!  Shred cabbage, cup it in a
cabbage leaf, and wear it as poultice.  She's on the fence about nursing
more or less on that side, since she doesn't know whether she needs it
"dried" up within two weeks or not.

Questions:  What do you think about her need to wean on that side?  How do
we speed healing and get rid of the drain?  If she needs/opts to wean on
that side, what's the fastest way to do it, given that this is an already
badly traumatized breast?

Now to answer *your* question:  baby was born at 50th percentiles, is at
90th at 5 weeks.  Nobody gets *all* the problems.  And, Maureen, I'm
digging through your book to find your story about how the mom's
postpartum raging at life's dirty deals seemed to have no impact at all on
the blissful baby;  this mom is worried that all her turmoil might be hard
on the baby.

Thank you, all, for your input.  Knowing that she has the whole world
pulling for her and digging out ideas for her means a lot to her.  You're
great!

Diane Wiessinger, MS, IBCLC, LLLL, small private practice, Ithaca, NY