Patients with aggressive and invasive breast cancer typically receive a mastectomy, a surgical procedure involving the removal of breast tissue. During a mastectomy, a surgeon removes the breast tissue, overlying skin and nipple. In some cases, the doctor will also remove part of the musculature under the affected breast, as well as all the lymph nodes around the breast in an effort to prevent spreading of the cancer. However, patients with metastatic breast cancer may still experience a number of serious side effects following a mastectomy, since the surgery only removes cancerous tissue in and around the breast. Other symptoms present after a mastectomy require medical treatment and can prove fatal.
Breathing Abnormalities
One common symptom of breast cancer women may experience even after a mastectomy is the development of breathing abnormalities. When breast cancer spreads throughout the body, breast cells very commonly colonize lung tissue, according to Imaginis. As the cancer grows within the lung, the tumor begins to take up space in the lung, decreasing lung capacity. As a result, patients with metastatic breast cancer may experience shortness of breath and dizziness, even after their cancer has been treated with a mastectomy. In cases of severe lung colonization, breast cancer patients may receive additional surgery to remove cancerous growth within the lung.
Liver Damage
Patients who have received a mastectomy may still develop liver damage as a result of their cancer growth. The liver performs the essential role of metabolizing chemicals and detoxifying the body. In breast cancer, cancer cells can travel throughout the bloodstream and begin to colonize tissue within the liver, where cancer growth is not affected by a mastectomy. Patients with liver metastases often feel excessively tired, sweat excessively, and have little or no appetite, according to Medline Plus. In more advanced stages of cancer, liver damage leads to a yellowing of the skin and the whites of the eyes, called jaundice. Liver cancer metastases after a mastectomy may respond to chemotherapy or radiation therapy to slow cancer growth.
Headaches
Another possible symptom of breast cancer after a mastectomy is a persistent or severe headache. This develops when breast cancer cells travel in the bloodstream and begin to grow within brain tissues. As the breast cancer grows, the tumor puts pressure on surrounding nerves, blood vessels and other brain tissues, leading to the development of severe headaches. Harvard University explains that headaches due to cancer growth often begin as temporary headaches that are worst in the morning, and gradually progress into constant headache. Since cancer growth in the brain can prove fatal, breast cancer patients who develop brain metastases after a mastectomy may undergo chemotherapy or additional surgery in an attempt to treat the cancer.
