Breast cancer survivor Lisa Cvijanovich saw several doctors regarding radiation damaging her nerves and muscles and compromising movement in her arm, chest and shoulders.
The Ahwatukee Foothills News reports the Arizona woman listened to a fellow patient who gave her advice that the doctors did not: see a physical therapist. The therapist she saw has devised a unique program for treating survivors of breast cancer, yet that program is precedent setting to the medical world.
“Anyone who has had breast cancer, and any treatment for it, I would recommend finding a physical therapist who has had training in breast cancer and lymphedema,” Cvijanovich told the publication. “My first appointment, even if that was all I had come for, I would have learned a lot about helping myself prevent lymphedema.”
According to the National Institutes of Health, lymphedma prevents immune cells from traveling where they are needed due to a blockage of lymph vessels.
With October being National Breast Cancer Awareness month as well as National Physical Therapy month, opportunities abound for patients with concerns and questions about early prevention and treatment of breast cancer and the benefits of physical therapy.