The list of things to do before starting chemo includes the seemingly ordinary task of getting a port (sometimes called a medi-port). Get your blood work, pick up groceries, wash the car, get a port… But port placement is actually surgery and being unprepared for the procedure can result in some unpleasant surprises or unexpected pain.

Interventional radiologist Dr. Aaron Fritts explains the procedure and answers our questions about ports, including a step-by-step walk through of the surgery, the options for sedation, and what you can and can’t do with a port.

Before you get a port, you’ll want to hear Dr. Fritts’ advice for advocating for yourself, preventing infection and how to avoid the complications he has seen when things go wrong.

Links

Away from patient care, Dr. Fritts leads BackTable, a medical education podcast network for doctors covering interventional radiology, vascular surgery, technology & innovation, and more.

BackTable

Find Dr. Fritts at Texas Radiology Associates

Support the Breast Cancer Stories podcast

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Meet Kristen’s doctors: surgical oncologist Dr. Louis Rivera, hematologist and oncologist Dr. Sonia Ali, plastic surgeon Dr. Salvatore Pacella, and radiation oncologists Dr. Anuradha Koka and Dr. Kenneth T. Shimizu.

About Breast Cancer Stories

Breast Cancer Stories follows Kristen Vengler, a 56 year old single empty nester in San Diego, from her diagnosis of hormone positive breast cancer through chemotherapy, mastectomy & breast reconstruction, radiation, and whatever happens after that.

In 2020, Kristen moved from Austin to San Diego to be near family and start her life over after a life-shattering workplace trauma. A few months later she had that terrifying moment in the shower we all hope we never have.

From her breast cancer diagnosis, through chemotherapy, breast reconstruction, and radiation, we experience each new milestone as it happens. This podcast is about what happens when you have breast cancer, told in real time.

Host and Executive Producer: Eva Sheie

Breast Cancer Stories is a production of The Axis.

PROUDLY MADE IN AUSTIN, TEXAS

Special Guest: Aaron Fritts, MD.