Hi Monique and Mike, I decided to chime in here as I, too, experienced debilitating pain post RC surgery that turned out to be nerve damage. (In my case, the pain was in my foot and leg.) It was excruciating! I described it to my husband as feeling as though my foot was sitting in a firepit of hot coals. Even a breath of air could cause the pain to spike. My GP referred me to the BC Cancer Agency’s pain clinic where they soon got me on a regimine of pregabalin (Lyrica) as well as hydromorphone. The doctor who treated me said that one rarely works as well as the two in combination. It took a while until I titrated up to the necessary dose to get my pain under control, but eventually I got some relief. That was a year ago. Eventually, I was able to go off the hydromorphone and then I very gradually began to wean off the Lyrica. My foot is still numb, but not nearly so painful and I can walk in relative comfort now. I am so grateful to have been referred to a pain clinic. My GP was good, but he didn’t know about the need to combine the pregabalin and the hydromorphone. The pain docs helped me overcome my concerns re taking narcotic pain meds and the clinic pharmacist helped me deal with attendant problem of constipation. Nerve pain can take a very long time to heal, so hang in – and get help from the experts if you can. Good luck!
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