Question:

Hello. My Mother is a lung cancer patient who has Pleurx drains bilaterally for recurrent pleural effusions.

Immediately and for some time (days-weeks) after being drained, she has had excruciating pain. Now, she is having the pain radiate to her neck and even to her teeth. Tramadol is not helping. Is this a common occurrence, and does she need a nerve pain med like Lyrica, gabapentine, etc?

Her docs don`t seem to be clear on what the cause is. They have started an infection work-up, and placed her on PO Levaquin. Any ideas on what would help? Thanks.

Answer:

People can have pain after drainage, but that severe pain isn’t common. Her doctor would need to make sure there isn’t a problem with the catheter before starting other medications.

For more information:

Go to the Lung Cancer health topic.