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Breast Cancer Blog

By Pam Stephan, About.com Guide to Breast Cancer

Lidocaine Gel Eases Breast Pain During Mammograms

Saturday July 26, 2008
Lidocaine Gel Pretreatment Eases the Squeeze of Breast Pain From Mammograms
Women who delay, or skip having an annual mammogram, may find some relief from the pain of compression, if they apply a 4% Lidocaine gel to their breast and on surrounding chest skin. A study done by Colleen K. Lambertz, a nurse at St Luke's Mountain States Tumor Institute, showed that women who used the Lidocaine gel instead of acetaminophen, ibuprofen, or a placebo had less pain from mammogram compression. This allowed the women to feel more in control of their mammogram experience, and more willing to keep up annual mammograms.
Lidocaine gel has many uses, among which are preventing pain from chemotherapy needles, and easing pain from hemorrhoids which can occur as a side effect of chemo.

Comments

July 26, 2008 at 10:48 pm
(1) Deborah says:

Wow, this makes me want to go out and get a mammogram that I have been putting off for years….thanks for the tip.

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