Risks for any surgery are:

• Blood clots in the legs that may travel to the lungs
• Breathing problems
• Infection, including in the surgical wound, lungs (pneumonia), bladder, or kidney
• Blood loss
• Heart attack or stroke during surgery
• Reactions to medications

The risks for breast removal are:

• Skin loss or long-term wounds on the chest wall
• Bleeding into the area where the breast used to be. Sometimes a second operation is needed to control bleeding.

Risks when you have lymph nodes removed during surgery are:

• Shoulder pain and stiffness occur in most women. Some may have severe stabbing or burning pain. They may also feel pins and needles where the breast used to be and underneath their arm.
• Swelling of the arm (called lymphedema) on the same side as the breast that is removed. This swelling is not common, but it can be an ongoing problem.
• Damage to nerves. This may cause numbing on the inside of the arm or weakness in muscles of the back and chest wall.

There are also risks related to breast reconstructive surgery.