lymphedema

I mean, that's gratifying work.

Lymphedema, lipidemia, you read there's nothing for that.

Well, I'm giving a talk at the lymphedema meeting back here in Denver this spring on how this works for that.

Post bariatric surgery, weight gain.

Okay.

Lymphedema, which is sometimes symmetric and it's hormonally driven.

So in terms of my history taking for patients, you know, I try to figure out when maybe this was triggered or flared.

I don't know the exact word.

Staging is actually progression, right? So you got stage one, two, three, not controversial, but not, some people have lipolymphedema because at that stage where you have obesity, lipodema, lipodema, lymphedema kind of coexist.

You have dysfunction of your lymphatic system already.

Lymphedema sets in.

And some people would call it stage four.

Eleanor Burnhill has this report.

Lymphedema, I had never heard of it until I was told I had it, basically.

Melanie Hudson lives in County Roscommon with her dog, Maisie.

Having survived breast cancer, she's now living with lymphedema, a debilitating and chronic condition that has caused her right arm to swell, making daily tasks more difficult.

The Irish Cancer Society says more of these clinics nationwide could be funded at a cost of €8 million annually.

Lisa Lockney is their survivorship manager.

Lymphedema is a real frequent complaint for people after cancer treatment, mainly surgery and radiation.

It can damage the lymph area and therefore slow down its movement.

Jennifer is a registered massage therapist and a certified...

Lymphedema therapist, did I say that

right?

Yeah, I literally just asked her and I had to check in again.

Then we'll start you off kind of easy here.

When you say the word lymphedema, what is lymphedema?

Lymphedema is swelling that occurs when the lymphatic system isn't able to move fluid through the body as effectively as it should.

This fluid can build up in areas such as arms, legs, face, and abdomen.

People may notice swelling, a feeling of heaviness or tightness, discomfort, or changes in their skin.

Lymphedema can develop gradually and typically starts in the lower or more distal parts of the limb before progressing upwards.

That's why Recognizing early signs is important.

Lymphedema therapy may support patients with chronic venous insufficiency, which is damage to veins that can cause swelling, primary lymphedema or cancer-related lymphedema.

I was a mom of young kids, and that's what I was doing.

We moved to Nashville 20 years ago, and probably about three or four years after we moved here, I was diagnosed with a condition called lymphedema.

Lymphedema is often a side effect from surgery and treatments.

Um, it means that essentially my arm swells.

Uh, my, the surgical arm swells, and that requires, uh, compression bandaging and going to PT and doing all this stuff.

I've recently had the pleasure of making an acquaintance with a massage therapy practitioner who has lots of these kinds of stories, and I'm going back to that well for today.

This story describes a situation that begins with a pathology, specifically lymphedema, but ends with a deeper ethical question about boundaries and what happens when a client says yes, but our education and our instincts say, "No, no, no." So listen on for more.

Here's the letter.

"I have a client who has a complex medical history, including breast cancer with bilateral mastectomy and lymph node removal, along with numerous other surgeries.

Because of the lymph node removal and the associated risk of lymphedema, my training and our clinic policies consider cupping contraindicated for her, particularly on the upper body and upper extremities.

The concern, as I was taught, is that deliberately stimulating increases in lymph flow would place too great a burden on any remaining lymph nodes that are already overburdened.

Over the years, both I and other therapists on my team have consistently declined to provide cupping for this client, and we have explained the rationale behind that decision.

I am pretty sure that this practitioner is not the only person who has run into situations like this, and it's always extra ironic when the person who's pushing boundaries, frankly, should know better.