Will I Need a Drainage Tube After Breast Cancer Surgery?

Question: Will I need a drainage tube after breast cancer surgery?

Answer: Breast surgery comes in all sizes and shapes, and sometimes you need a drainage tube and sometimes you do not. For example, if you have a mastectomy, then you will definitely need a drainage tube. If you have a complete axillary dissection -- that is, removal of the lymph nodes from the axilla -- you will need a drainage tube. But if you have a small breast operation -- for example, excision of a tumor -- you probably will not need a drainage tube.