About a week ago I had a large cyst on my cheek lanced and drained by my doctor. Before the cyst was drained it was large, red and very tender. After the draining I felt immediate relief. The next few days after the draining it would weep just blood a few times a day due to the open wound from the incision. What would normally happen is I would wake up in the morning with a slight lump where the cyst was, I would then have a shower and the wound would painlessly leak just blood and the lump would completely flatten. This continued for the next few days, the lump would fill with blood and then it would painlessly weep blood and it would flatten. However, since the open wound has now healed the blood is no longer draining and the lump remains on my face and has gotten slightly bigger since yesterday. The lump is mostly colourless with a little bruising from being squeezed and it is completely painless including when i prod it with my finger.
My question is what is actually happening? Does this mean the cyst will grow back or is the empty sack just filling up with blood and will it naturally flatten over time? Or is it scar tissue? Or something else? This is very frustrating as I have job interviews coming up and it is a real confidence killer. I will add some pictures below. Thanks!
Hi! I'm sorry you are dealing with this. I have not had a situation exactly like yours, so I can't say why it keeps refilling. My cysts never filled with blood, but after draining, they would refill with clear liquid and need draining again a few times as it healed from the inside out. After healing, they would not swell again. I can only recall one odd time that I had a smaller cyst which I drained. It seemed to heal fine. But over time ( a week or two?) it did puff up again. It was not a major swelling like an active lesion. It also did not hurt. But, at one point as I pressed on it I saw a little "head" area. I couldn't resist opening it up. Not really the best thing, but I didn't understand what was up. (This is gross!) Anyhow, I expected clear liquid to come out, but it was mixed with blood and as I pushed on it this gelatinous substance started poking out. It was the weirdest thing. I was able to carefully pull it out and it was like skin but red. I don't know how to describe it. Just thin skin that I guess you could call a sac? Anyways, I never figured out what it was. My best guess was that this particular lesion had a sac that I drained, but refilled and then expelled itself. Once I removed that, the spot healed up completely and did not return. It never hurt. **Not saying to do this because you could make it even worse**
I have heard people describe sebaceous cysts on their scalp which swell and either with release or not, go away. But they keep coming back in the exact same spot. Someone added that you had to remove the sac to get it to thoroughly heal. I have no idea if that is what I had or not. But because I had heard that, it made me think it was a possibility since the "skin" stuff came out.
Because you had it done by a doctor, can you call and ask about the problem? Otherwise, for swelling, you might be able to try some ice a few minutes at a time a few times a day.
Sorry I can't be of more help. Maybe someone else has experienced the same thing.