Mine bothered me, so had it taken out when they did the reconstruction (six months after mastectomy).

As far as the port goes it depends on type of cancer you had but the average is a year, although it seem like it close to the skin it about 2 inch under you skin and it sewed in

You have to insist that they take blood draws from it. I always ask ahead of time if they can take it out of my port. I usually have to get poked three times before they get blood from a vein in my arm. I am usually able to make them understand why I want to use the port.

not ONCE was blood taken from my port, btw. anyhow when I was done w chemo and surgery I wanted the port out. oncologist said most people leave it in bec recurrence usually happens 18 - 24 mo after surgery. I told her I wanted it out that if it comes back that you put it in once it can be put in again. nothing more was done until it was time to flush it bec of not using it, at the time I was getting gamma ray treatment and my radiology doc contacted my onc and made arrangements to have it out. the doc who cut it out didn't let the lidocaine cook enough or didn't give me enough at the time and when he made the cut I felt everything. moral.... be sure to make the docs follow what YOU want and be sure the lidocaine is in long enough to kill the pain of the scalpel when she takes it out. my skin was very tight on the port too, and when the swelling went down you could see the divot where it was. can still see where the tube was and hole where it went in over my clavicle. so so glad it's out.......

I had my first one taken out when I had my double mastectomy. I ended getting a new port a year and a half ago when my cancer returned. I still have it and it is still being used. If we can get this in remission and they can switch me to an oral chemo or immunotherapy, then I will have it removed. For now, I have just learned to live with it. Just glad to be living:) If I wear a swimsuit top with halter straps, you can't even see it. If someone sees it, I don't really care anymore. It is one of my many battle scars with this disease.