Why you need a port

Ports are wonderful things. They may look bad right after they are implanted (as you can see) but they make IV treatments and butterfly needles seem brutal. It is my opinion that every human should have a port implanted when they are born...just in case. Seriously though, I simply rub Lidocaine on the port an hour before treatment, and when they stick the needle in I feel nothing. For my first treatment I had not had the port implanted yet, and my vein hurt for over a week. The Mustard gas is very caustic to veins. But because the port dumps the catheter right into the superior vena cava, the drugs get diluted quicker, and no damage is done to veins. I see no down sides, other than what looks like a skinned over eyeball sticking out of your arm (or chest). Or as Rebecca says, a dog squeaky toy (she thinks it should squeak when you push it! She thought it would be fun to bring in a squeaky toy and just as the nurse inserts the catheter, Squeak!). Although you do need to get a heprin shot to keep the line clean after each use and once a month for maintainence after chemotherapy is completed.

Everyone should get one!