Hi Richard, I have a port in my chest I have had 9 treatments through it, i
would never do it any other way it is so easily used, one canula goes in the
port and all the drugs go through that.It did require day sugery no pain
wouldnt even know it was there. I am not sure about the line I have seen
some of the others have one in their arm, but as I have no nodes in either
arm this was the only way for me. Hope all goes well take care Valerie aka
Balsey

<< Can anybody comment on what happens when one of these tubes is implanted?
Is it painful?  Is there a lot of blood?  I'd particularly appreciate any
comments on the pros and cons of having this done under local anaesthetic.

Some find this procedure to be quite easy and have absolutely no difficulties.
However, others do find it uncomfortable and may have difficulty.
Occasionally, it needs to be redone in a different area.
I was not offered the choice of a port.  I didn't even know what one was until
I came online.  I asked one of the chemo nurses who said they  do give them if
the patient requests but they generally don't use them unless there is a
problem.
I never had one and did not find it a problem.  I had  4 cycles of AC and 4
cycles of taxanes plus a year of Herceptin plus 7 Zometa infusion which is
about 63 infusions without any difficulty.  Once in awhile a nurse would have
to stick  me twice but that was not usually the case.
Again, from my situation, I am glad that I never had one because I also had IBC
(inflammatory breast cancer) with dermal lymphatic invasion (skin involvement).

The line was put in under local anaesthetic and with a large dose of
Rohypnol as a sedative.  Apart from some blurred vision and sleepiness for a
few days there have been no problems.  This line should save a lot of
aggravation trying to find intact veins for blood tests and injections so it
seems to be ideal for patients with bad veins.

Many thanks to all who responded. As always, the advice from members of this
group has been invaluable.

Regards,

Richard