A 45-year-old patient who underwent a double mastectomy two months ago is now complaining of pain at the incision site. Which type of pain is most likely?

In the context of a patient who has undergone a double mastectomy and is now experiencing pain at the incision site two months post-surgery, the most likely type of pain is neuropathic pain. This type of pain can often arise from damage to the nerves during surgical procedures or from changes in the neural pathways that occur after surgery. Typically, neuropathic pain is described as burning, tingling, or sharp sensation and might be due to scar tissue or nerve injury related to the surgical site.

While somatic pain is also a possibility, it generally describes pain that arises from tissue injury and inflammation localized to the musculoskeletal system, often dull and aching, rather than the specific nerve-related issues often seen in neuropathic pain. Visceral pain originates from internal organs and is often described as deep, squeezing, or vague, which would not align with the history of incision pain from a surgical procedure like a mastectomy. Phantom pain, on the other hand, pertains to the sensation of pain in a limb or organ that has been removed, which does not apply since the patient still has their chest, albeit with surgical scars. Therefore, considering the specifics of the surgical history and the nature of the pain described, neuropathic pain is