Conference Proceedings

Abstract

Prevention of post-mastectomy complications is the major objective of physiotherapy. The prognostic benefits of lymph node dissection have been demonstrated for patients with breast cancer or gynecological malignancies; however, a complication associated with this procedure is lymphedema. Lymphedema is a common complication in patients who have undergone breast cancer surgery. Breast cancer-associated lymphedema (BCRL) is a major complication of breast cancer treatment, affects the quality of life of breast cancer survivors who develop it. Edema commonly affects the arm, leading to discomfort, decreased arm movements, pain, and decreased quality of life We studied whether manual lymphatic drainage could manage or prevent upper limb edema in patients after breast cancer surgery. Recent studies have shown that manual lymphatic drainage has a beneficial result in combating lymphedema in patients who have undergone surgery for breast cancer. Lymphatic drainage also has a beneficial effect in preventing lymphedema in patients after breast cancer surgery. Therefore, the relationship between post-mastectomy lymphedema and quality of life has evolved as an important criterion for treating breast cancer survivors. This study aims to analyze the effectiveness of manual lymphatic drainage in the treatment of postmastectomy lymphedema in order to reduce the volume of lymphedema and to assess the improvement of concomitant symptoms. The number of patients included in the study was 15, who had breast cancer surgery. The current study verifies the effect of manual lymphatic drainage on upper limb lymphedema after anterior axillary lymphadenectomy/sentinel node biopsy in the maintenance phase of lymphedema after breast cancer surgery