Keloid

So after being dormant for about 10 weeks, there is something happening to my heart bypass surgery chest scar. Before, there was just a faint pink line running down my chest. If you look closely, there is a slight channel where the cut was. It seems like during the past few days, there is now flesh growing along the scar so the pink line is slightly raised.

I think the term for this is keloid. From Wikipedia:

Keloid, also known as keloid disorder and keloidal scar, is the formation of a type of scar which, depending on its maturity, is composed mainly of either type III (early) or type I (late) collagen. It is a result of an overgrowth of granulation tissue (collagen type 3) at the site of a healed skin injury which is then slowly replaced by collagen type 1. Keloids are firm, rubbery lesions or shiny, fibrous nodules, and can vary from pink to the color of the person’s skin or red to dark brown in color.

Although my keloid looks nothing like the photo in Wikipedia, I think I’m starting to experience some pain along the site. Previously, the pain has been deeper in the chest cavity. Now there is some pain on the surface and seemingly along the scar. My cousin, who had her surgery two years ago, said that she still feels some pain, and the skin around the scar sometimes feel numb. Two years! That’s some crazy long recovery time. That’s why I think going back to work in a couple of weeks is fine. Recovery improvements from here on out will be very slow so waiting a few more weeks won’t make a difference.