August 13, 2012
Personalized
care treats cancer swelling best - Futurity:
Research News –
Cancer
survivors with painful swelling would benefit more from individualized care
focused on quality of life, rather than therapy based on symptoms
alone.
Many
insurance providers and health care professionals assess whether lymphedema
patients need treatment based solely on how swollen their limbs are, says Jane
Armer, professor of nursing at the University
of Missouri and director of nursing research at Ellis Fischel
Cancer Center. But several studies show that the volume of fluid doesn’t
necessarily correspond with patients’ discomfort.
“Practitioners
need to treat the swelling while considering patients’ distress. We don’t want
to burden them with unnecessary or ineffective treatments,” Armer says. “Health
care providers should focus on managing symptoms and choose carefully among
various treatments to provide individualized care plans that comfort patients,
which may require modifying existing protocols.”
In
a review of published
literature, Armer and colleagues found that Complete
Decongestive Therapy (CDT), a comprehensive approach for treating lymphedema
involving skin care, exercise, manual lymphatic drainage, and compression of
the swollen limbs, may be the best form of specialized lymphedema
management.
“Patients
have different medical needs and come from culturally diverse backgrounds. They
have different goals, support systems, pain levels, and treatment tolerances.
All these factors influence patients’ responses to care, which affects their
well-being,” says co-author Marcia Beck, a graduate of University of Missouri
who now works at Truman Medical Centers in Kansas City, Missouri.
“Caring
for lymphedema patients should be flexible and adjusted to maintain patients’
quality of life,” says Ausanee Wanchai, another co-author who received her
doctorate at MU and now teaches at Boromarajonani College of Nursing in
Buddhachinnaraj, Thailand.
In
a separate
literature review, the researchers found that Intermittent
Pneumatic Compression (IPC) therapy, in which sequential inflatable devices
surrounding swollen limbs are used to increase lymphatic circulation, is
beneficial as an adjunct therapy for chronic lymphedema patients who have
limited or no access to medical care; patients can use the compression devices
in their homes.
Further
research is needed to demonstrate the usefulness of various lymphedema
treatments, such as CDT and IPC, Armer says. The literature reviews were the
third and fourth in a series of 12 to be published in conjunction with the
American Lymphedema Framework Project (ALFP). As director of the ALFP, Armer
works alongside clinical experts and investigators to increase awareness of
lymphedema and related disorders.
Researchers
at the University of Texas, NorthShore University HealthSystem, and Walter Reed
Military Medical Center contributed to the review.
More
news from the University of Missouri: http://munews.missouri.edu/
August
9, 2012
Individualized
Care Best for
Lymphedema
Patients, MU Researcher Says - HealthCanal.com
–
MU
researcher directs foundation that reviews published research;
makes recommendationsbased
on findings
By
Kate McIntyre
COLUMBIA,
Mo. – Millions of American cancer survivors experience chronic discomfort as a
result of lymphedema, a common side effect of surgery and radiation therapy in
which affected areas swell due to protein-rich fluid buildup. After reviewing
published literature on lymphedema treatments, aUniversity of Missouri
researcher says emphasizing patients’ quality of life rather than
focusing solely on reducing swelling is critical to effectively managing the
condition.
Jane
Armer, professor in the
MU
Sinclair School of Nursing
and director of nursing research at
Ellis
Fischel Cancer Center, said many
insurance
providers and health care professionals assess whether lymphedema
patients need treatment based solely on how swollen their limbs are. However,
several studies have shown that the volume of fluid doesn’t necessarily
correspond with patients’ discomfort.
“Practitioners
need to treat the swelling while considering patients’ distress. We don’t want
to burden them with unnecessary or ineffective treatments,” Armer said. “Health
care providers should focus on managing symptoms and choose carefully among
various treatments to provide individualized care
plans
that comfort patients, which may require modifying existing
protocols.”
In
their literature review, Armer and her colleagues found that Complete
Decongestive Therapy (CDT), a comprehensive approach for treating lymphedema
involving skin
care, exercise, manual lymphatic drainage and compression of the swollen
limbs, may be the best form of specialized lymphedema management.
“Patients
have different medical needs and come from culturally diverse backgrounds. They
have different goals, support systems, pain levels and treatment tolerances.
All these factors influence patients’ responses to care, which affects their
well-being,” said Marcia Beck, a review co-author and an MU graduate who now
works at Truman Medical Centers
in Kansas City, Mo.
“Caring
for lymphedema patients should be flexible and adjusted to maintain patients’
quality of life,” said Ausanee Wanchai, another co-author who received her
doctorate at MU and now teaches at Boromarajonani
College of Nursing
in Buddhachinnaraj, Thailand.
In
a separate literature review, the
researchers found that Intermittent Pneumatic Compression (IPC) therapy, in
which sequential inflatable
devices
surrounding swollen limbs are used to increase lymphatic circulation, is
beneficial as an adjunct therapy for chronic lymphedema patients who have
limited or no access to medical care; patients can use the compression devices
in their homes.
Armer
said further research is needed to demonstrate the usefulness of various
lymphedema treatments, such as CDT and IPC. The literature reviews were the
third and fourth in a series of 12 to be published in conjunction with the American
Lymphedema Framework Project
(ALFP). As director of the ALFP, Armer works alongside clinical experts
and investigators to increase awareness of lymphedema and related disorders.
The ALFP was founded in 2008 and is headquartered at the MU Center for
Lymphedema Research, Practice and Health Policy. Its steering committee and
staff currently are partnering with the
International
Lymphedema Framework
(ILF) in producing an updated edition of the ILF Best
Practice Document from 2006.
The
article, “Palliative Care for Cancer-Related Lymphedema: A Systematic Review,”
recently was published in the
Journal of Palliative
Medicine. Armer’s co-authors also included researchers from MU and
the University
of Texas. The other review, “Intermittent Pneumatic Compression Therapy:
A Systematic Review,” was published in the journal
Lymphology
earlier this year. Researchers from the NorthShore
University
HealthSystem, Walter Reed Military Medicine Center and
University of Texas
contributed to the review.
--30--
Story Contact: Jesslyn Chew, (573) 882-8353, [email protected]
July
26, 2012
Health
Calendar: Week of July 26, 2012 - Daily
Breeze –
Item
has expired sorry
July
24, 2012
This
Man Has A 160-Pound SCROTUM On Strange Sex! - PerezHilton.com
–
TLC has done it again!
But in this case, we're not so much weirded out as we
are SAD for thisguy !
Only last night's episode of
Strange
Sex - you
know, that insane show that
depicted adults
drinking
breast milk - viewers were introduced to
Wesley,
a man who suffers from scrotal lymphedema…which essentially means that his
balls have grown to be 160 pounds, and six feet in circumference!
And they haven't stopped!
In fact, every year they will 50 pounds
heavier!
Ch-ch-check out a clip of the difficulties that he -
and his home healthcare worker, Passion - endures on a day-to-day
basis (above)!
The poor guy has to wear an upside-down sweatshirt
through his legs just to keep his junk in place!
But we can't help but wonder why he hasn't had
corrective surgery!
At the end of the episode a caption read that doctors
were offering him it for an affordable price, yet he was hesitant!
We know it's scary, buddy, but at this point, you're
not going to have too much longer where you can even support the weight of your
own junk!
Yeesh!
July
23, 2012
Regional
and health reporter - Online
Athens – By ERIN
FRANCE
Battling sickness is nothing new to Tyler Lavender. The
17-year-old has had to do so most of his life.
As a toddler, Tyler and his mom, Greta Roland, spent a
lot of time at Scottish Rite Children’s Medical Center in Atlanta. Doctors
tested Tyler for several rare genetic diseases, but didn’t diagnose him with
primary lymphedema until after his legs started to swell in middle
school.
The swelling built up slowly as fluid containing the
body’s bacteria, chemicals and other wastes collected in his legs. Family and
friends thought at first he was putting on weight. But his legs continued to
expand.
“After eighth grade they became big, like huge,” Tyler
said.
Typically, the human body flushes waste out in urine.
With lymphedema, the waste collects, expanding the skin and making movement
difficult. The genetic condition increases Tyler’s chance for forming blood
clots in his legs and healing slows, making even small abrasions or bug bites a
site for a potential infection.
But lymphedema hasn’t just damaged his body. Tyler’s
spirit suffers as well.
As his condition worsened, school bullies picked on
Tyler. He fought back at times, but eventually decided to leave school and
complete his education at home.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve had suicidal thoughts about it,”
Tyler said. “I haven’t had them recently, but it has brought me down to the most
depressive state I can think of.”
People see him and stare, he said.
“They don’t look at me,” he said. “They look at my
legs.”
Tyler and his mom live in Hull, where Roland works from
home. She telecommutes, earning money by managing websites and Facebook pages
for local companies and bands.
The money Roland pulls in isn’t enough to cover Tyler’s
medical costs, so she enrolled her son in Medicaid. Some people view Medicaid
as a way for lazy people to get health care, but that isn’t the case for Tyler,
she said.
“He is disabled,” Roland said.
Medicaid has been a mixed blessing. The program paid
for dentist visits and sessions with a counselor when Tyler’s depression
mounted, Roland said, but it’s also stopped her son from getting the best
care.
While Georgia doctors are skilled at treating
lymphedema in the arms, health professionals recommended that Tyler seek care
at Siskin Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn.
However, Roland said, Medicaid doesn’t cover
out-of-state doctors’ visits.
Siskin Hospital’s month-long inpatient treatment
program would teach her and Tyler how to treat his lymphedema at home. There
are ways to wrap his legs, and certain exercises that help drain the fluid and
manage the condition, Roland said. Left untreated, the lymphedema will travel
up Tyler’s body, enlarging the skin around his pelvis and stomach.
Roland has applied three times for a Medicaid waiver.
She’s called Gov. Nathan Deal and U.S. Rep. Paul Broun asking for their help to
get her son to Chattanooga, she said.
She’s still waiting to hear if the latest Medicaid
waiver application will be approved.
“Of course I’m going to fight,” Roland said. “We’ve
been fighting for him his whole life.”
For more information about Tyler, visit
http://on.fb.me/Mz9F9p
June
28, 2012
Lymphedema is a chronic
swelling - Wahpeton Daily News
– by Becky Dockter, PT, MPT
Lymphedema
is a type of chronic swelling that occurs typically in the arms or legs, but
can also affect the head and neck in some individuals. It is caused by a
malfunction of the lymphatic system that normally drains excess fluid from the
limbs. This sometimes happens after radiation, chemotherapy or surgical
procedures that involve removal of the lymph nodes. It can also occur following
trauma or an infection, which can damage the lymph vessels.
Lymphedema
can develop immediately after any of these events, but can also begin several
years afterward as well. It is typically not painful, but can cause an achy or
heavy feeling in the limb and make daily activities difficult.
There is no cure currently for lymphedema, but it can
be controlled through a therapy program referred to as complete decongestive
therapy. There are four parts to this program including:
1. Compression of the affected limb. Oftentimes, the
limb will be wrapped with compression bandages first, then the patient will be
fit with a permanent garment once the swelling has decreased.
2. A specialized form of massage, referred to as manual
lymph drainage is used to route the fluid from the affected limb toward healthy
lymph collectors and nodes in the other limbs, and encourage decongestion of
the affected limb.
3. A light exercise program is recommended to assist
with general mobility and light exercise does help the fluid to move out of the
affected area more efficiently. Heavy weight lifting or very strenuous exercise
is not recommended as it can increase swelling in the tissues.
4. Finally, skincare and protection of the limb are
very important in preventing flare ups. The affected limb should be kept clean
and moisturized to avoid cracks in the skin that could lead to
infection.
A person with lymphedema should avoid getting
injections or immunizations in the affected limb if possible as well.
Controlling lymphedema does take a commitment to follow, but in the long run,
can prevent complications such as infection or discomfort from
occurring.
OSPTI offers complete decongestive therapy services,
which are provided at the clinic. We can work with you in finding a treatment
regimen that works for your daily life.
BECKY DOCKTER is an physical therapist at OSPTI in
Breckenridge, Minn.
June
12, 2012
Candidate
questionnaire: Mary Cotner - Southeast Missourian –
Candidate
questionnaire: Mary Cotner
Tuesday, June 12,
2012
seMissourian.com
NAME:
Mary
Cotner
AGE:
62
PLACE OF
BIRTH:
Bloomfield, MO.
Stoddard County
SPOUSE,
CHILDREN'S NAMES:
Kimberly
Hendrix-deceased
Brian
Hendrix
OCCUPATION: Physical
Therapist Assistant
EDUCATION:
Graduate Bell
City High School
Graduate
SIU-Carbondale, Associate Degree in Applied Science in Physical
Therapy.
EMPLOYER:
Southeast Health
(Southeast Hospital)
BUSINESSES OWNED,
ALL OR PART:
I am co-partner
with my sister on a few rental houses.
PUBLIC OFFICES
HELD OR SOUGHT; GIVE DATES:
Seeking position
for Cape County Public Administrator.
WHAT MAKES YOU
THE BEST CANDIDATE FOR THIS OFFICE?
I feel I am the
best candidate for the Public Administrator's position. I have 25 years in the
medical field as a Physical Therapist Assistant working with patients that have
neurological, orthopaedic and lymphedema conditions.
I also have
personal experience. My daughter was born with cerebral palsy, leaving her
physically and mentally challenged, for 37 years I took care of her financial
and health care needs.
WHY ARE YOU
SEEKING THIS SEAT IN SUCH A CROWDED FIELD?
Due to my
knowledge and personal experience and knowing these court appointed clients are
similar to my own daughter condition, I have been in that position to know what
is best or to the best of my knowledge of how to watch after their financial
and health care needs to give them the best quality of life while they are on
this earth.
CLOSING
REMARKS:
I know this
position is not going to be the easiest job, nor is it going to be a 9-5
position, it is going to be twenty-four seven. I am willing to intervene on
each clients behalf to protect, see to their financial and health care needs
and see their quality of life is maintained.
© Copyright
2012
Southeast Missourian. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
Police
beat and community briefs, for June 13, 2012 - Ocala
This
item was a one day thing and has passed, sorry
June
22, 2012
Man
with 100-pound scrotum turns down free surgery - WTSP 10 News –
LAS VEGAS (CBS
Las Vegas) -
A Las
Vegas man with a 100-pound scrotum
has turned down the chance of free surgery to correct his
condition.
Wesley Warren Jr., who
suffers
from scrotal lymphedema, appears to have turned down
the surgery offered by "The Dr. Oz Show" because it might hinder his celebrity
status.
"Howard Stern wants me on his show," Warren, 47, told
the Las Vegas Journal-Review, adding that he was afraid he might die during the
surgery and that he didn't want to give an exclusive interview to Dr. Oz
following the surgery.
Warren said he did not turn down the free surgery to
keep his "claim to fame."
"Who would want to live like this?" he explained to the
Journal-Review.
Warren will soon appear in a documentary on The
Learning Channel and had an appearance on Comedy Central's
"Tosh.0."
"It was fun going to Los Angeles in the bigvan they sent for me," Warren
told the Journal-Review.
Warren has suffered from this condition since 2008 when
he accidentally struck his testicles on his legs while sleeping, waking up to
his scrotum being "the size of a soccer ball." According to his
Facebook page, he has said that he has
been to numerous doctors but nothing has helped.
"I kind of gave up," he said.
Warren set up a PayPal account to help pay for the
seven-figure surgery since he is on disability.
According to The Center for Reconstructive Urology in
Orange, Calif., scrotal lymphedema can be caused by a hernia or fluid
accumulation between the testicle and skin.
July
5, 2012
New
study shows liposuction can tackle lymphedema in head and neck cancer patients
- Harley Medical News – by Lucinda
Maxwell
A new study has
shown liposuction can be used to treat submental lymphedema in patients who
have suffered from head or neck cancer.
The condition
often occurs among individuals who have received treatment for these forms of
cancer and affects the area under the chin. Fluid builds up and the soft
tissues in the neck start to swell, leading to the area not functioning
properly and becoming disfigured.
Dr S. Mark Taylor
and Dr Maria Brake, of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, conducted
a study on ten patients suffering from submental lymphedema and treated the
condition by making a small incision in their necks before usingliposuction to remove fat and
fluid.
“The procedure is
well tolerated under local anaesthesia and in our hands has proven to be very
effective, resulting in high patient satisfaction,” the authors
stated.
None of those who
took part in the study experienced complications and their condition did not
reoccur following the procedure.
All patients
claimed they would recommend the treatment to others with submental lymphedema
as they were pleased with the results.
The report was
published in the journal Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and the authors
now plan to offer liposuction to their other head and neck cancer
patients.
See original
story here:
http://www.oncologynurseadvisor.com/liposuction-helps-manage-lymphedema-in-head-and-neck-cancer/article/248541/
June
29, 2012
North
American Seminars Inc presents Understanding Lymphedema, An Online Physical
Therapy Continuing Education Course - DigitalJournal.com
(press release) –
Franklin, TN (PRWEB) June 29, 2012
Understanding Lymphedema is an
online
continuing education course for physical therapists
and occupational therapists that focuses on developing a understanding
of the medical condition of lymphedema.
What is lymphedema? Is it common or rare? Is
lymphedema misdiagnosed or not even diagnosed? Is the incidence of lymphedema
accurately reported? Are health care professionals in the United States
adequately trained in our university based medical/allied health professional
programs to recognize lymphedema and treat it appropriately? How do you treat
lymphedema? Are resources easily available for patients diagnosed with
lymphedema? These questions and others will be answered in this home study
course. The United States does not lack the availability of short stretch
compression bandages or compression garments used in the treatment of
lymphedema. What is lacking among the hundreds of thousands of health care
professionals in this country is the basic knowledge, skills, and abilities to
diagnose and treat millions of Americans who suffer from lymphedema. These
basic knowledge and skills are not usually taught in medical programs, nursing
programs, physical therapy programs, or occupational therapy
programs.
Course Objectives:
Upon completion of this
online
pt ceu course, the course participant will have been instructed
and tested on the following course objectives.
1) Define lymphedema
2) Describe the anatomy of lymphatic vessels
3) Identify the two largest lymphatic vessels in the body
4) Describe the
physiology of the lymphatic system
5) Identify the different types of lymphedema and incidence
6) Describe the treatment
for early detection and intervention for breast cancer related lymphedema
7) Describe a
potential cure
for lymphedema
8) Describe the physiological effect from compression pumps
9) List the treatment
techniques for lymphedema
10) List the contraindications for lymphedema
treatment.
This
physical
therapy continuing education course online
can be purchased at healthclick.com
This online continuing educayion course for
PT and OT is 4 hours and is approved by continuing education course credit by
state licensing boards.
Read the full story at
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/6/prweb9659228.htm
Read
more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/777054#ixzz24ywiW1aX
July
1, 2012
Helping
patients get around the swelling of
lymphedema - Pittsburgh
Post Gazette – By Pohla Smith
Their
offices at Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC are attached, so whenever she saw her
surgeon, Candace McGuire, breast cancer survivor Ellen Gainer went next door to
another UPMC program to be screened for lymphedema, using a technique designed
to stop swelling before it gets bad enough to interfere with the use of her
arm.
Lymphedema
is a buildup of fluid caused by a blockage in the lymphatic system that results
in a painful and incurable but controllable condition marked by swelling that
is usually found in an arm or a leg. Cancer, surgery, radiation or infection in
any area of the body near the lymph system can cause the blockage that results
in lymphedema, but in the United States it is most often associated with breast
cancer.
Ms.
Gainer, 47, of Whitehall, who works in the health and welfare department of
U.S. Steel Corp., underwent chemotherapy and then a lumpectomy and surgical
removal of 20 lymph nodes, six of them cancerous, in February 2011. She had her
first screening on the machine called an L-Dex for a baseline measurement of
her lymph fluid the day of her surgery. She subsequently underwent
radiation.
"The
amount of fluid kept getting larger with each measurement, so after the fifth
measurement they said maybe you should see Dr. [Atilla] Soran," she
said.
Dr.
Soran is a surgeon and director of UPMC's Lymphedema Education, Screening,
Early Detection and Prevention Program.
When
he began it in 2010 under an $80,000 grant from the Magee-Womens Hospital
Volunteer Service Board the program was the first in the world to do screenings
with the L-Dex, which, he said, is the only device approved by the Food and
Drug Administration to test patients for lymphedema. Manufactured by ImpediMed,
it uses electrodes that run on low electrical frequency and work something like
an EKG to measure the lymph fluid, which circulates through the body via lymph
vessels, picking up bacteria, viruses and waste products to be filtered through
the lymph nodes. The fluid is then returned to the bloodstream.
When
the L-Dex measures fluid levels on a scale of more than the normal range of
minus 10 to 10 units, the condition is called lymphedema even if there are no
easily seen signs of the disorder and treatment is started. That way the
lymphedema can be caught before it is painful and disabling.
"The
goal is to catch volume change before the clinical lymphedema appears," Dr.
Soran said. "If you can catch them early, the incidence [of lymphedema] changes
from 25 percent to 7 percent. There's less pain, less swelling, less cost,
better quality of life. ... When we catch these, the patient can start early
therapy, simple exercise, diet, garments and will be OK for a very long
time."
Exercise,
diet for those with a body mass index over 30 and compression garments are
standard treatment for patients with lymphedema. Other treatments include laser
therapy and compression pump therapy, which comprises intermittent, sequential
pumps with chambers that inflate one at a time while moving up the limb,
facilitating the movement of lymph fluid.
Ms.
Gainer had some arm swelling by the time of her fifth screening was diagnosed
as stage 1, grade 1 lymphedema, she said. She was prescribed physical therapy,
self-massage and then laser therapy. She also wore a compression garment on her
arm intermittently. "I did my first therapy for three times a week for three
weeks in February 2012 and then off for eight weeks, then for three times a
week for three weeks," she said. "Then I had a follow-up with Dr. Soran, and
there was no swelling in my arm. I was downgraded to stage 0, and he said to
keep an eye on me so I go back in a year." She still wears the garment
periodically.
Although
frequently not diagnosed, there will be more than 60,000 new cases of
lymphedema in the U.S. each year out of 230,000 new breast cancers, Dr. Soran
said. In Pennsylvania, there are more than 2,000 cases of lymphedema yearly out
of more than 10,000 new breast cancers, he said.
Since
starting the screening program, Dr. Soran and his personnel have done about 900
measurements, "and even if there's a short-term follow-up, we catch around 14
percent of patients without clinical lymphedema, and then we start early
therapy," he said.
Unfortunately,
the grant that covered the L-Dex and the automatic screenings of breast cancer
patients through 2011 has run out, he said, leaving many patients with no
insurance coverage. UPMC insurance covers the screenings, "but, unfortunately,
most [insurances] are not covering reimbursement, so patients have to pay or
are refusing to get the measurements. So now our numbers are going down, and
we'll see more with severe lymphedema." Nevertheless, all patients are being
offered the screenings.
Under
the protocol, the patient is screened before the surgery, every three to six
months over the next year, and every six to 12 months for five years. The cost
is $200 per measurement, Dr. Soran said.
Theoretically,
the screenings should continue for the rest of a patient's life as the risk of
developing lymphedema diminishes but never goes away.
"Seventy-five
percent of lymphedema [cases] may be diagnosed in five years," Dr. Soran said.
"Twenty five percent is the lifetime risk ... [it] would be better to measure
for a lifetime."
Ms.
Gainer believes her screenings were covered by the grant but says she'll
continue to have them even if she has to pay for them herself.
"I
would still be fine with that. I want to be sure I catch it before it becomes a
problem," she said.
She
also said she would re-commend the screenings to "anyone that's experiencing
any kind of symptoms. It's painless."
Pohla Smith:
[email protected] or 412-263-1228.
First
Published July 2, 2012 12:00 am
Read
more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/health/helping-patients-get-around-the-swelling-of-lymphedema-642896/#ixzz24yxAsjGB
July
2, 2012
Scar
tissue, swelling problems for cancer survivors - Lexington
Herald Leader – By Claire Davies –
Breast cancer is
one of the most common cancers among American women. According to the American
Cancer Society, more than 289,000 U.S. women will be diagnosed in 2012.
Unfortunately, many of the 2.6 million survivors experience long-term side
effects of swelling, pain, thickened scar tissue and decreased flexibility
after treatment.
Swelling can occur
in the upper limbs and chest following removal of lymph nodes, trauma to the
lymph vessels through radiation, or infection. This swelling, known as
lymphedema, is the result of protein accumulating in the tissues. Those with
lymphedema might experience decreased flexibility in the hand, wrist or elbow,
or their clothes, rings or watches could become tight on one arm. It's
important to recognize these symptoms and seek medical advice as soon as
possible because early diagnosis and treatment improve the
condition.
Treatment of
lymphedema is called complete decongestive therapy, and it involves manual
lymph drainage, compression bandaging and garments (sleeves and/or glove), skin
and nail care, therapeutic exercises, infection education and self
treatment.
Referral to a
certified lymphedema therapist for an individualized program is essential to
treat the lymphedema appropriately.
Scar tissue can
develop and tighten in the incision area after breast cancer surgery, and the
area might become hypersensitive. This hypersensitivity frequently occurs at
the incision and drain site, and can make wearing a bra or clothing
painful.
ASTYM treatment is
a non-invasive soft tissue therapy using handheld tools to apply force to the
tissue. The therapy "remodels" the tissue and provides a desensitizing effect.
ASTYM treatment also may be used on other soft-tissue problems, such as
shoulder tendonitis and elbow epicondylitis. Recognizing signs of pain and
hypersensitivity and contacting an ASTYM- certified provider are important to
help decrease long-term symptoms.
Participating in
physical activity and an individualized exercise program improves range of
motion in the shoulder and stretches scar tissue. Movement of the joints and
muscles helps increase the lymph flow to move the lymph fluid. Exercise also
improves the feeling of well-being, contributes to increased energy levels and
helps maintain a healthy weight.
The key to
treatment of lymphedema and scar tissue is early referral to a physical
therapist specially trained to address the individual's needs and help minimize
pain, swelling and further formation of scar tissue.
Claire Davies is a
physical therapist with Central Baptist Hospital Outpatient Therapy
Services.
Read more here:
http://www.kentucky.com/2012/07/02/2245603/scar-tissue-swelling-problems.html#storylink=cpy
June
13, 2012
Liposuction
effective in treating submental lymphedema in patients with head
and neck cancer - News-Medical.net -
Liposuction is a novel and minimally
invasive procedure for treating persistent submentallymphedema in patients with previous
head and neck cancer,
according to an article published in the June 2012 issue of Otolaryngology-Head
and Neck Surgery.
"Submental
lymphedema is a common problem encountered by patients following treatment of
head and neck cancer," the authors state.
It
causes fluid deposition and persistent swelling of the soft tissues of the
neck, leading to disfigurement and functional deficits. The aim of the study is
to introduce the otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeon to the authors' new
surgical technique: the use of liposuction to treat patients with submental
lymphedema.
The
surgical technique involves making an incision into the neck and using
liposuction to remove fat and fluid from the treatment area. In the authors'
small study on 10 patients, the surgery was well-tolerated by patients
suffering submental lymphedema. The cohort had at least one year of cancer-free
follow-up prior to the procedure. No patients in the cohort developed a
recurrence in the neck, and there have been no complications. All 10 patients
were satisfied with the results of their procedure and would recommend it to
other patients, the authors' state.
The
authors conclude, "The procedure is well tolerated under local anesthesia and
in our hands has proven to be very effective, resulting in high patient
satisfaction. We plan to continue to offer this to our head and neck cancer
patients with submental lymphedema and encourage others to consider it as part
of their treatment strategy."
Source: American
Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
June
20, 2012
Man
with 100-Pound Scrotum that Made Him Feel like a "Freak Says
'No' to Free Surgery Offer
-
Medical Daily – BY CHRISTINE
HS
A
Las Vegas man who has a 100 pound scrotum because of a rare condition that made
him feel like a "freak" has turned down an offer for free $1 million corrective
surgery to treat his scrotal lymphedema.
Wesley
Warren Jr. reportedly declined an opportunity to have the "Dr. Oz Show" pay for
the medical expenses for the surgery because he would have had to give up the
rights to his story, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The
47-year-old became famous after his gigantic scrotum was featured on the Howard
Stern Show and the Comedy Central program Tosh.0, and according to the
newspaper, Warren's new-found fame may have gone to his head as he appears to
be enjoying his local celebrity status.
"I'll
make a decision when I'm ready," Warren told the paper.
Firecracker
Films, the company that produced 'Big Fat Gypsy Weddings' has already signed a
contract to make a documentary about him.
Warren
weighs 400 pounds, with his scrotum accounting for a quarter of his weight. His
condition, which causes his scrotum to swell with watery fluid, makes it hard
for him to urinate because his penis is buried so deeply in his abnormal growth
and impossible to for him to have a normal sex life.
When
Warren was interviewed in October he became emotional as he described the pain
and humiliation of carrying the deformed genitals.
He
told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he suffered frequent depression and
health complications, and that he must wear a hooded sweatshirt on his legs
when he's out in public to contain his scrotum.
Warren
had told the paper last year that the only thing he wanted was to urinate like
a normal man and have a romantic relationship with a woman.
He
had also said that he was going public so that he could raise money to afford
an operation.
"I
don't like being a freak, who would?" he told the Review-Journal.
However,
six months after his story gained worldwide media attention the reporter
noticed a stark contrast in Warren's behavior compared to that last time he was
interviewed.
"The
Wesley Warren of today does not act like the somber Wesley Warren I interviewed
last fall," Paul Harasim of the paper wrote. "Rather than on the edge of tears,
he's seemingly enjoying his celebrity. He reminds you he'll soon appear on The
Learning Channel and that Fire Cracker Films of Great Britain signed him to a
contract for a documentary."
However,
Warren denies that he wants the celebrity spotlight more than his corrective
surgery.
"Who
would want to live like this?" Warren Jr. said. "I just don't want to die
during the operation."
Read
more at http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/10382/20120620/scrotum-wesley-warren-surgery-lymphedema.htm#OX5fPXxp62ECy9wl.99
June
19, 2012
Wesley
Warren Jr., Man With 100 Pound Scrotum, Turns Down
- International Business
Times –
This
is a duplicate of last article and think of earlier one too ,
sorry
June
13, 2012
Multitalented
Westborough mom – hospice volunteer, nurse practitioner, massge
therapist - Community Advocate – By Sue
Wambolt –
Westborough – Beth Terhune is a licensed, nationally
certified massage therapist and certified lymphedema therapist. She has
studied, practiced and mentored in the field of oncology massage, is a
hospice volunteer, and founder of the Abbott Road Project. She will also soon
be entering the Graduate School of Nursing at the UMass Medical Center in its
GEP program.
Before becoming a massage therapist, Terhune worked in
Silicon Valley, Cal. She came to Massachusetts to pursue a graduate degree in
history and to work as a senior research fellow at the Center for Knowledge
Communication in the Computer Science Department at UMass-Amherst.
In 2004, in a midlife career change, Terhune received a
diploma from the Bancroft School of Massage Therapy. Immediately following, she
trained in cancer work and in prenatal and postpartum work.
A year ago, Terhune and fellow therapists Donna Venuto,
of Healing Hands Muscular Therapy, and Kelly Burneson, of Balance
Rehabilitative Massage, created the Healing and Wellness Center in Westborough.
The women had been sharing space, running the Natural Healing Center off the
rotary in Westborough, but needed more space, so they joined forces and moved
to Chauncy Place on Lyman Street in Westborough.
In May of 2011, Terhune began offering intermittent
clinic days that provide no-cost access to trained oncology massage
practitioners for individuals with cancer. The Abbott Road Project was
established in honor of Terhune’s maternal grandmother, Geneva “Dynamite”
Brotherton, and her dream to create a place where all people were welcome,
regardless of socioeconomic status or background, and where individuals would
be comfortable regardless of the challenges being faced without judgment or
demand. (Abbott Road is a place in the town in eastern Washington where
Brotherton grew up and lived most of her adult life.)
During Abbott House clinic days, Terhune provides
oncology massage therapists an opportunity to come together in community, to
reinforce standards of practice, and to support local individuals living with
cancer and their caregivers with free access to safe, comfort-oriented oncology
massage services. The clinic days are very special, Terhune said, with
hour-long massage sessions and yoga classes for those living with
cancer.
“What I love about the Abbott Road Project clinic days
is that they are days of breathing room and giving,” Terhune said. “We have had
a number of those who have received massage turn around and volunteer their own
time at other clinic days.”
The massage sessions are by appointment only, and each
individual’s medical teams are involved in planning treatment sessions to
accommodate medical devices, medical histories, current cancer treatment
protocols underway and surgical interventions.
Terhune chooses a nonprofit to spotlight each clinic
day (for example: Lucy’s Love Bus, the PINK Revolution, 15-40, and the Virginia
Thurston Healing Garden) so that the therapists can learn more about groups
that support their clients and their clients’ caregivers. Additionally, it
allows for clients and their families to learn about other support services
that might be available to them. Additionally, there is art created on clinic
days. Inspired by Robin Batchelder, of Sparks Art Studio in Hopkinton, the
therapists, volunteers and participants all end up working on art projects
throughout the day. According to Terhune, it is a wonderful way to provide the
clients with a way to ease back out into the work and to allow for space for
them to network with each other without outside pressures.
Quilts have been part of the Abbott Road Project since
the beginning. One of Terhune’s clients brought a quilt for the first clinic
day – they have it and another alongside for people to hold and sign, if so
moved. The quilts have also traveled with Terhune and inspired oncology massage
therapists around the country about the project and its meaning.
“There aren’t words that describe how this work feels,”
Terhune said. “I have the honor and privilege of holding people when they are
traveling some of the most complicated pieces of their lives and helping them
come to a place where they don’t feel like diagnoses but, rather, feel like
themselves despite diagnoses, if even for a little while. It is a very
humbling, beautiful kind of work to be able to do.”
Since the Abbott Road Project began, 25 oncology
massage therapists, five nurses and physician’s assistants and 50 lay
volunteers have volunteered their time with the project. In all, over 70
individuals living with cancer have benefited from the services provided (with
some returning more than once and some returning to volunteer).
Anyone interested in participating in the clinics can
email [email protected] or call the Healing &
Wellness Center, 508-366-8133, ext. 2.
The ability to
participate in art projects on clinic days has provided a nice way for
therapists, patients and volunteers to connect – “Windblessings” are just one
example.
July 12, 2012
The
Sully Side of Sports: Former Panther lets nothing slow her down
- Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier (blog) – By
JIM SULLIVAN
Deborah Cordner Carson tried to run away from
lymphedema, the condition that ended her track and field career at Northern
Iowa a decade ago.
Today, Carson confronts it, chases it and sprints past
it.
Friday, the 32-year-old former Panther will begin
competition in the Reebok CrossFit in Carson, Calif. It’s a three-day mix of
workouts and competitions that can range from push ups to 400-meter sprints to
ocean swimming to softball throws. Some of the events are revealed early; a few
are surprises.
“The known and the unknown,” said Carson, who now lives
in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. “They make it, like, dramatic.”
This much is known about Deborah Cordner Carson. She
will compete. She will confront the disease that’s caused swelling in her leg
for 10 years. She will not let it stand in her way.
“I always felt like lymphedema chose me,” said Carson
this week. “But I came to a point in my life where I chose lymphedema. It
sounds weird. But, if I think about it that way, it’s like I choose to wrap my
leg. I choose to wear the garment and put it on in the morning. It’s not like
lymphedema has control of me. I feel like I have control.”
Reaching that outlook was not exactly a sprint to the
finish line for Carson.
Ten years ago, she was a good 400 runner for UNI, good
enough to win a Missouri Valley Conference outdoor championship in 2000. Then
she noticed a lump in her groin. It was surgically removed, but then the
episodes of swelling in her leg began and wouldn’t stop.
After one serious instance, Deborah Cordner sought
medical help. Finally, the word came from a specialist. She had lymphedema, a
condition that affects roughly 140 million people worldwide. Swollen limbs is
one of the symptoms.
A young track athlete was one of those 140 million. One
girl in the prime of her athletic career heard the medical advice – give up her
sport. So she did.
“It wasn’t like I was making money doing it,” said
Deborah Cordner Carson a decade later. “At that point, track was my soul. It
was what I did. It was who I was. To have someone tell me I have to stop doing
it at this moment was devastating.
“I guess I took it for granted.”
She went through a time of denial. Eventually, Carson
began doing what she needed to do, such as wrapping her leg and wearing a
protective garment to keep down the swelling. After moving back to the Twin
Cities in Minnesota, she met Patrick Carson, an Iowa native.
The man who became her husband gave her words to live
by during those moments when she asked, “Why me?”
Essentially, Patrick told her, “Why not you? I don’t
think I’ve seen anybody else as strong as you are.”
Said Deborah Cordner Carson, “It kind of empowered me.
It made me feel as strong as I am. I guess there’s a reason why I have this. I
can deal with it.
“It’s OK. It’s just my life. I have to take every day
as it comes and do what I have to do with my leg and deal with it the next
day.”
Carson dealt with a serious case of cellulitis along
the way. That didn’t stop her, either. Over the years, she traveled from no
physical activity to walking to running. By 2009, she had discovered CrossFit.
Hesitant at first, Carson began competing.
A year ago, Carson finished third in the North Central
Regional and qualified for national competition. That’s where she found out
that ocean swimming was an event.
She didn’t know how to swim. She withdrew.
A year later, Carson qualified again for the CrossFit
Games. Part of her training? Ocean swimming - wrapping and stocking and
all.
“I had to figure out how to make it work,” said
Carson.
Soon, Carson will figure out the rest of the speech
she’ll be giving in September. She’ll deliver the keynote address during the
opening ceremony for the National Lymphedema Network conference in
Dallas.
Once upon a time, Carson was reluctant to talk about
lymphedema. For a while, her CrossFit coach in St. Paul didn’t know she had it.
Those days are gone.
“I was super excited,” she said. “The cool thing is,
the doctors and scientific people don’t want me to sit there and give
scientific information. They want me to share my story – show the human side
and how I cope and do what I do.”
It’s a running story with no finish line in
sight.
“It means a lot to me to make it to this point in my
life where I’m doing something very physically demanding and mentally
demanding,” said Deborah Cordner Carson. “I mean, for a while, I didn’t think
I’d do anything. It means a lot to me to overcome what happened in my last year
at Northern Iowa.”
July 14, 2012 - You have to join
something to get this article - sorry
Boutique
Caters to Cancer Patients - Voices News –
Specialists will be available to
fit lymphedema compression sleeves and
garments, and for those experiencing hair loss, to assist in the selection and
fitting of wigs, hair pieces and bangs, turbans, scarves, hats and sleep caps,
and scalp and wig care
...
July 15, 2012
NUMC
to Offer
Lymphedema
Therapy to Breast Cancer Surgery Patients - Patch.com
–
Lymphedema is an abnormal
accumulation of protein-rich fluid which causes chronic inflammation of
affected tissue.
Arthur Gianelli, the President/CEO of the NuHealth
System, announced the start of a lymphedema therapy service to be offered in
the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the
Nassau
University Medical Center
(NUMC) to women suffering from the debilitating effects following breast
cancer surgery.
Lymphedema is an abnormal accumulation of protein-rich
fluid which causes chronic inflammation of affected tissue. Lymphedema is a
common side effect of breast cancer treatment in particular. While it is not
life threatening, it is however uncomfortable with numbness and infection
possibilities.
“Under the leadership of Lyn Weiss, MD, chair, and Lyn
Alkes, OTR, RN, certified lymphatic therapist, women suffering from a common
side effect of breast cancer will benefit from a combination of techniques
which include manual compression, lymphatic massage, compression bandages
and/or customized garments and remedial exercises, helping to restore optimum
function to women following breast cancer surgery,” said Gianelli. “It is very
important to treat lymphedema as soon as it develops in order to avoid and
control complications going forward.”
“We are delighted to offer this new and much needed
service to help make a difference in a woman’s life, especially those
recovering following breast cancer surgery," Dr. Weiss said. "Ms. Alkes
underwent extensive training to gain proficiency in treating these patients.
This therapy will help to relieve discomfort and pain , help to restore optimum
function and improve their lives.”
Decongestion therapy consists of stimulating the skin
and the underlying multitude of lymphatic vessels by a well trained hand of a
certified lymphatic therapist. Customized bandages are applied at the end of
the treatment session with the goal to minimize the re-accumulation of fluid
and to reshape the limb so that it resembles the unaffected limb. The
compression sleeve is an elasticized sleeve, customized to patient’s limb and
can be used alone or with manual lymphatic drainage.
For additional information of for a consultation,
please call 516-572-6533. Lymphatic therapy service is covered by most forms of
insurance, with bandages or compression garments provided partly or on a
sliding scale.
July 21, 2012
Hull
teen seeks treatment for rare condition - Online
Athens – by Erin France
Battling sickness is nothing new to Tyler Lavender. The
17-year-old has had to do so most of his life.
As a toddler, Tyler and his mom, Greta Roland, spent a
lot of time at Scottish Rite Children’s Medical Center in Atlanta. Doctors
tested Tyler for several rare genetic diseases, but didn’t diagnose him with
primary lymphedema until after his legs started to swell in middle
school.
The swelling built up slowly as fluid containing the
body’s bacteria, chemicals and other wastes collected in his legs. Family and
friends thought at first he was putting on weight. But his legs continued to
expand.
“After eighth grade they became big, like huge,” Tyler
said.
Typically, the human body flushes waste out in urine.
With lymphedema, the waste collects, expanding the skin and making movement
difficult. The genetic condition increases Tyler’s chance for forming blood
clots in his legs and healing slows, making even small abrasions or bug bites a
site for a potential infection.
But lymphedema hasn’t just damaged his body. Tyler’s
spirit suffers as well.
As his condition worsened, school bullies picked on
Tyler. He fought back at times, but eventually decided to leave school and
complete his education at home.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve had suicidal thoughts about it,”
Tyler said. “I haven’t had them recently, but it has brought me down to the most
depressive state I can think of.”
People see him and stare, he said.
“They don’t look at me,” he said. “They look at my
legs.”
Tyler and his mom live in Hull, where Roland works from
home. She telecommutes, earning money by managing websites and Facebook pages
for local companies and bands.
The money Roland pulls in isn’t enough to cover Tyler’s
medical costs, so she enrolled her son in Medicaid. Some people view Medicaid
as a way for lazy people to get health care, but that isn’t the case for Tyler,
she said.
“He is disabled,” Roland said.
Medicaid has been a mixed blessing. The program paid
for dentist visits and sessions with a counselor when Tyler’s depression
mounted, Roland said, but it’s also stopped her son from getting the best
care.
While Georgia doctors are skilled at treating
lymphedema in the arms, health professionals recommended that Tyler seek care
at Siskin Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn.
However, Roland said, Medicaid doesn’t cover
out-of-state doctors’ visits.
Siskin Hospital’s
month-long inpatient treatment program would teach her and Tyler how to treat
his lymphedema at home. There are ways to wrap his legs, and certain exercises
that help drain the fluid and manage the condition, Roland said. Left
untreated, the lymphedema will travel up Tyler’s body, enlarging the skin
around his pelvis and stomach.
Roland has applied three times for a Medicaid waiver.
She’s called Gov. Nathan Deal and U.S. Rep. Paul Broun asking for their help to
get her son to Chattanooga, she said.
She’s still waiting to hear if the latest Medicaid
waiver application will be approved.
“Of course I’m going to fight,” Roland said. “We’ve
been fighting for him his whole life.”
For more information about Tyler, visit
http://on.fb.me/Mz9F9p.
Personalized
care treats cancer swelling best - Futurity:
Research News –
Cancer
survivors with painful swelling would benefit more from individualized care
focused on quality of life, rather than therapy based on symptoms
alone.
Many
insurance providers and health care professionals assess whether lymphedema
patients need treatment based solely on how swollen their limbs are, says Jane
Armer, professor of nursing at the University
of Missouri and director of nursing research at Ellis Fischel
Cancer Center. But several studies show that the volume of fluid doesn’t
necessarily correspond with patients’ discomfort.
“Practitioners
need to treat the swelling while considering patients’ distress. We don’t want
to burden them with unnecessary or ineffective treatments,” Armer says. “Health
care providers should focus on managing symptoms and choose carefully among
various treatments to provide individualized care plans that comfort patients,
which may require modifying existing protocols.”
In
a review of published
literature, Armer and colleagues found that Complete
Decongestive Therapy (CDT), a comprehensive approach for treating lymphedema
involving skin care, exercise, manual lymphatic drainage, and compression of
the swollen limbs, may be the best form of specialized lymphedema
management.
“Patients
have different medical needs and come from culturally diverse backgrounds. They
have different goals, support systems, pain levels, and treatment tolerances.
All these factors influence patients’ responses to care, which affects their
well-being,” says co-author Marcia Beck, a graduate of University of Missouri
who now works at Truman Medical Centers in Kansas City, Missouri.
“Caring
for lymphedema patients should be flexible and adjusted to maintain patients’
quality of life,” says Ausanee Wanchai, another co-author who received her
doctorate at MU and now teaches at Boromarajonani College of Nursing in
Buddhachinnaraj, Thailand.
In
a separate
literature review, the researchers found that Intermittent
Pneumatic Compression (IPC) therapy, in which sequential inflatable devices
surrounding swollen limbs are used to increase lymphatic circulation, is
beneficial as an adjunct therapy for chronic lymphedema patients who have
limited or no access to medical care; patients can use the compression devices
in their homes.
Further
research is needed to demonstrate the usefulness of various lymphedema
treatments, such as CDT and IPC, Armer says. The literature reviews were the
third and fourth in a series of 12 to be published in conjunction with the
American Lymphedema Framework Project (ALFP). As director of the ALFP, Armer
works alongside clinical experts and investigators to increase awareness of
lymphedema and related disorders.
Researchers
at the University of Texas, NorthShore University HealthSystem, and Walter Reed
Military Medical Center contributed to the review.
More
news from the University of Missouri: http://munews.missouri.edu/
August
9, 2012
Individualized
Care Best for
Lymphedema
Patients, MU Researcher Says - HealthCanal.com
–
MU
researcher directs foundation that reviews published research;
makes recommendationsbased
on findings
By
Kate McIntyre
COLUMBIA,
Mo. – Millions of American cancer survivors experience chronic discomfort as a
result of lymphedema, a common side effect of surgery and radiation therapy in
which affected areas swell due to protein-rich fluid buildup. After reviewing
published literature on lymphedema treatments, aUniversity of Missouri
researcher says emphasizing patients’ quality of life rather than
focusing solely on reducing swelling is critical to effectively managing the
condition.
Jane
Armer, professor in the
MU
Sinclair School of Nursing
and director of nursing research at
Ellis
Fischel Cancer Center, said many
insurance
providers and health care professionals assess whether lymphedema
patients need treatment based solely on how swollen their limbs are. However,
several studies have shown that the volume of fluid doesn’t necessarily
correspond with patients’ discomfort.
“Practitioners
need to treat the swelling while considering patients’ distress. We don’t want
to burden them with unnecessary or ineffective treatments,” Armer said. “Health
care providers should focus on managing symptoms and choose carefully among
various treatments to provide individualized care
plans
that comfort patients, which may require modifying existing
protocols.”
In
their literature review, Armer and her colleagues found that Complete
Decongestive Therapy (CDT), a comprehensive approach for treating lymphedema
involving skin
care, exercise, manual lymphatic drainage and compression of the swollen
limbs, may be the best form of specialized lymphedema management.
“Patients
have different medical needs and come from culturally diverse backgrounds. They
have different goals, support systems, pain levels and treatment tolerances.
All these factors influence patients’ responses to care, which affects their
well-being,” said Marcia Beck, a review co-author and an MU graduate who now
works at Truman Medical Centers
in Kansas City, Mo.
“Caring
for lymphedema patients should be flexible and adjusted to maintain patients’
quality of life,” said Ausanee Wanchai, another co-author who received her
doctorate at MU and now teaches at Boromarajonani
College of Nursing
in Buddhachinnaraj, Thailand.
In
a separate literature review, the
researchers found that Intermittent Pneumatic Compression (IPC) therapy, in
which sequential inflatable
devices
surrounding swollen limbs are used to increase lymphatic circulation, is
beneficial as an adjunct therapy for chronic lymphedema patients who have
limited or no access to medical care; patients can use the compression devices
in their homes.
Armer
said further research is needed to demonstrate the usefulness of various
lymphedema treatments, such as CDT and IPC. The literature reviews were the
third and fourth in a series of 12 to be published in conjunction with the American
Lymphedema Framework Project
(ALFP). As director of the ALFP, Armer works alongside clinical experts
and investigators to increase awareness of lymphedema and related disorders.
The ALFP was founded in 2008 and is headquartered at the MU Center for
Lymphedema Research, Practice and Health Policy. Its steering committee and
staff currently are partnering with the
International
Lymphedema Framework
(ILF) in producing an updated edition of the ILF Best
Practice Document from 2006.
The
article, “Palliative Care for Cancer-Related Lymphedema: A Systematic Review,”
recently was published in the
Journal of Palliative
Medicine. Armer’s co-authors also included researchers from MU and
the University
of Texas. The other review, “Intermittent Pneumatic Compression Therapy:
A Systematic Review,” was published in the journal
Lymphology
earlier this year. Researchers from the NorthShore
University
HealthSystem, Walter Reed Military Medicine Center and
University of Texas
contributed to the review.
--30--
Story Contact: Jesslyn Chew, (573) 882-8353, [email protected]
July
26, 2012
Health
Calendar: Week of July 26, 2012 - Daily
Breeze –
Item
has expired sorry
July
24, 2012
This
Man Has A 160-Pound SCROTUM On Strange Sex! - PerezHilton.com
–
TLC has done it again!
But in this case, we're not so much weirded out as we
are SAD for thisguy !
Only last night's episode of
Strange
Sex - you
know, that insane show that
depicted adults
drinking
breast milk - viewers were introduced to
Wesley,
a man who suffers from scrotal lymphedema…which essentially means that his
balls have grown to be 160 pounds, and six feet in circumference!
And they haven't stopped!
In fact, every year they will 50 pounds
heavier!
Ch-ch-check out a clip of the difficulties that he -
and his home healthcare worker, Passion - endures on a day-to-day
basis (above)!
The poor guy has to wear an upside-down sweatshirt
through his legs just to keep his junk in place!
But we can't help but wonder why he hasn't had
corrective surgery!
At the end of the episode a caption read that doctors
were offering him it for an affordable price, yet he was hesitant!
We know it's scary, buddy, but at this point, you're
not going to have too much longer where you can even support the weight of your
own junk!
Yeesh!
July
23, 2012
Regional
and health reporter - Online
Athens – By ERIN
FRANCE
Battling sickness is nothing new to Tyler Lavender. The
17-year-old has had to do so most of his life.
As a toddler, Tyler and his mom, Greta Roland, spent a
lot of time at Scottish Rite Children’s Medical Center in Atlanta. Doctors
tested Tyler for several rare genetic diseases, but didn’t diagnose him with
primary lymphedema until after his legs started to swell in middle
school.
The swelling built up slowly as fluid containing the
body’s bacteria, chemicals and other wastes collected in his legs. Family and
friends thought at first he was putting on weight. But his legs continued to
expand.
“After eighth grade they became big, like huge,” Tyler
said.
Typically, the human body flushes waste out in urine.
With lymphedema, the waste collects, expanding the skin and making movement
difficult. The genetic condition increases Tyler’s chance for forming blood
clots in his legs and healing slows, making even small abrasions or bug bites a
site for a potential infection.
But lymphedema hasn’t just damaged his body. Tyler’s
spirit suffers as well.
As his condition worsened, school bullies picked on
Tyler. He fought back at times, but eventually decided to leave school and
complete his education at home.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve had suicidal thoughts about it,”
Tyler said. “I haven’t had them recently, but it has brought me down to the most
depressive state I can think of.”
People see him and stare, he said.
“They don’t look at me,” he said. “They look at my
legs.”
Tyler and his mom live in Hull, where Roland works from
home. She telecommutes, earning money by managing websites and Facebook pages
for local companies and bands.
The money Roland pulls in isn’t enough to cover Tyler’s
medical costs, so she enrolled her son in Medicaid. Some people view Medicaid
as a way for lazy people to get health care, but that isn’t the case for Tyler,
she said.
“He is disabled,” Roland said.
Medicaid has been a mixed blessing. The program paid
for dentist visits and sessions with a counselor when Tyler’s depression
mounted, Roland said, but it’s also stopped her son from getting the best
care.
While Georgia doctors are skilled at treating
lymphedema in the arms, health professionals recommended that Tyler seek care
at Siskin Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn.
However, Roland said, Medicaid doesn’t cover
out-of-state doctors’ visits.
Siskin Hospital’s month-long inpatient treatment
program would teach her and Tyler how to treat his lymphedema at home. There
are ways to wrap his legs, and certain exercises that help drain the fluid and
manage the condition, Roland said. Left untreated, the lymphedema will travel
up Tyler’s body, enlarging the skin around his pelvis and stomach.
Roland has applied three times for a Medicaid waiver.
She’s called Gov. Nathan Deal and U.S. Rep. Paul Broun asking for their help to
get her son to Chattanooga, she said.
She’s still waiting to hear if the latest Medicaid
waiver application will be approved.
“Of course I’m going to fight,” Roland said. “We’ve
been fighting for him his whole life.”
For more information about Tyler, visit
http://on.fb.me/Mz9F9p
June
28, 2012
Lymphedema is a chronic
swelling - Wahpeton Daily News
– by Becky Dockter, PT, MPT
Lymphedema
is a type of chronic swelling that occurs typically in the arms or legs, but
can also affect the head and neck in some individuals. It is caused by a
malfunction of the lymphatic system that normally drains excess fluid from the
limbs. This sometimes happens after radiation, chemotherapy or surgical
procedures that involve removal of the lymph nodes. It can also occur following
trauma or an infection, which can damage the lymph vessels.
Lymphedema
can develop immediately after any of these events, but can also begin several
years afterward as well. It is typically not painful, but can cause an achy or
heavy feeling in the limb and make daily activities difficult.
There is no cure currently for lymphedema, but it can
be controlled through a therapy program referred to as complete decongestive
therapy. There are four parts to this program including:
1. Compression of the affected limb. Oftentimes, the
limb will be wrapped with compression bandages first, then the patient will be
fit with a permanent garment once the swelling has decreased.
2. A specialized form of massage, referred to as manual
lymph drainage is used to route the fluid from the affected limb toward healthy
lymph collectors and nodes in the other limbs, and encourage decongestion of
the affected limb.
3. A light exercise program is recommended to assist
with general mobility and light exercise does help the fluid to move out of the
affected area more efficiently. Heavy weight lifting or very strenuous exercise
is not recommended as it can increase swelling in the tissues.
4. Finally, skincare and protection of the limb are
very important in preventing flare ups. The affected limb should be kept clean
and moisturized to avoid cracks in the skin that could lead to
infection.
A person with lymphedema should avoid getting
injections or immunizations in the affected limb if possible as well.
Controlling lymphedema does take a commitment to follow, but in the long run,
can prevent complications such as infection or discomfort from
occurring.
OSPTI offers complete decongestive therapy services,
which are provided at the clinic. We can work with you in finding a treatment
regimen that works for your daily life.
BECKY DOCKTER is an physical therapist at OSPTI in
Breckenridge, Minn.
June
12, 2012
Candidate
questionnaire: Mary Cotner - Southeast Missourian –
Candidate
questionnaire: Mary Cotner
Tuesday, June 12,
2012
seMissourian.com
NAME:
Mary
Cotner
AGE:
62
PLACE OF
BIRTH:
Bloomfield, MO.
Stoddard County
SPOUSE,
CHILDREN'S NAMES:
Kimberly
Hendrix-deceased
Brian
Hendrix
OCCUPATION: Physical
Therapist Assistant
EDUCATION:
Graduate Bell
City High School
Graduate
SIU-Carbondale, Associate Degree in Applied Science in Physical
Therapy.
EMPLOYER:
Southeast Health
(Southeast Hospital)
BUSINESSES OWNED,
ALL OR PART:
I am co-partner
with my sister on a few rental houses.
PUBLIC OFFICES
HELD OR SOUGHT; GIVE DATES:
Seeking position
for Cape County Public Administrator.
WHAT MAKES YOU
THE BEST CANDIDATE FOR THIS OFFICE?
I feel I am the
best candidate for the Public Administrator's position. I have 25 years in the
medical field as a Physical Therapist Assistant working with patients that have
neurological, orthopaedic and lymphedema conditions.
I also have
personal experience. My daughter was born with cerebral palsy, leaving her
physically and mentally challenged, for 37 years I took care of her financial
and health care needs.
WHY ARE YOU
SEEKING THIS SEAT IN SUCH A CROWDED FIELD?
Due to my
knowledge and personal experience and knowing these court appointed clients are
similar to my own daughter condition, I have been in that position to know what
is best or to the best of my knowledge of how to watch after their financial
and health care needs to give them the best quality of life while they are on
this earth.
CLOSING
REMARKS:
I know this
position is not going to be the easiest job, nor is it going to be a 9-5
position, it is going to be twenty-four seven. I am willing to intervene on
each clients behalf to protect, see to their financial and health care needs
and see their quality of life is maintained.
© Copyright
2012
Southeast Missourian. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
Police
beat and community briefs, for June 13, 2012 - Ocala
This
item was a one day thing and has passed, sorry
June
22, 2012
Man
with 100-pound scrotum turns down free surgery - WTSP 10 News –
LAS VEGAS (CBS
Las Vegas) -
A Las
Vegas man with a 100-pound scrotum
has turned down the chance of free surgery to correct his
condition.
Wesley Warren Jr., who
suffers
from scrotal lymphedema, appears to have turned down
the surgery offered by "The Dr. Oz Show" because it might hinder his celebrity
status.
"Howard Stern wants me on his show," Warren, 47, told
the Las Vegas Journal-Review, adding that he was afraid he might die during the
surgery and that he didn't want to give an exclusive interview to Dr. Oz
following the surgery.
Warren said he did not turn down the free surgery to
keep his "claim to fame."
"Who would want to live like this?" he explained to the
Journal-Review.
Warren will soon appear in a documentary on The
Learning Channel and had an appearance on Comedy Central's
"Tosh.0."
"It was fun going to Los Angeles in the bigvan they sent for me," Warren
told the Journal-Review.
Warren has suffered from this condition since 2008 when
he accidentally struck his testicles on his legs while sleeping, waking up to
his scrotum being "the size of a soccer ball." According to his
Facebook page, he has said that he has
been to numerous doctors but nothing has helped.
"I kind of gave up," he said.
Warren set up a PayPal account to help pay for the
seven-figure surgery since he is on disability.
According to The Center for Reconstructive Urology in
Orange, Calif., scrotal lymphedema can be caused by a hernia or fluid
accumulation between the testicle and skin.
July
5, 2012
New
study shows liposuction can tackle lymphedema in head and neck cancer patients
- Harley Medical News – by Lucinda
Maxwell
A new study has
shown liposuction can be used to treat submental lymphedema in patients who
have suffered from head or neck cancer.
The condition
often occurs among individuals who have received treatment for these forms of
cancer and affects the area under the chin. Fluid builds up and the soft
tissues in the neck start to swell, leading to the area not functioning
properly and becoming disfigured.
Dr S. Mark Taylor
and Dr Maria Brake, of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, conducted
a study on ten patients suffering from submental lymphedema and treated the
condition by making a small incision in their necks before usingliposuction to remove fat and
fluid.
“The procedure is
well tolerated under local anaesthesia and in our hands has proven to be very
effective, resulting in high patient satisfaction,” the authors
stated.
None of those who
took part in the study experienced complications and their condition did not
reoccur following the procedure.
All patients
claimed they would recommend the treatment to others with submental lymphedema
as they were pleased with the results.
The report was
published in the journal Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery and the authors
now plan to offer liposuction to their other head and neck cancer
patients.
See original
story here:
http://www.oncologynurseadvisor.com/liposuction-helps-manage-lymphedema-in-head-and-neck-cancer/article/248541/
June
29, 2012
North
American Seminars Inc presents Understanding Lymphedema, An Online Physical
Therapy Continuing Education Course - DigitalJournal.com
(press release) –
Franklin, TN (PRWEB) June 29, 2012
Understanding Lymphedema is an
online
continuing education course for physical therapists
and occupational therapists that focuses on developing a understanding
of the medical condition of lymphedema.
What is lymphedema? Is it common or rare? Is
lymphedema misdiagnosed or not even diagnosed? Is the incidence of lymphedema
accurately reported? Are health care professionals in the United States
adequately trained in our university based medical/allied health professional
programs to recognize lymphedema and treat it appropriately? How do you treat
lymphedema? Are resources easily available for patients diagnosed with
lymphedema? These questions and others will be answered in this home study
course. The United States does not lack the availability of short stretch
compression bandages or compression garments used in the treatment of
lymphedema. What is lacking among the hundreds of thousands of health care
professionals in this country is the basic knowledge, skills, and abilities to
diagnose and treat millions of Americans who suffer from lymphedema. These
basic knowledge and skills are not usually taught in medical programs, nursing
programs, physical therapy programs, or occupational therapy
programs.
Course Objectives:
Upon completion of this
online
pt ceu course, the course participant will have been instructed
and tested on the following course objectives.
1) Define lymphedema
2) Describe the anatomy of lymphatic vessels
3) Identify the two largest lymphatic vessels in the body
4) Describe the
physiology of the lymphatic system
5) Identify the different types of lymphedema and incidence
6) Describe the treatment
for early detection and intervention for breast cancer related lymphedema
7) Describe a
potential cure
for lymphedema
8) Describe the physiological effect from compression pumps
9) List the treatment
techniques for lymphedema
10) List the contraindications for lymphedema
treatment.
This
physical
therapy continuing education course online
can be purchased at healthclick.com
This online continuing educayion course for
PT and OT is 4 hours and is approved by continuing education course credit by
state licensing boards.
Read the full story at
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2012/6/prweb9659228.htm
Read
more: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/777054#ixzz24ywiW1aX
July
1, 2012
Helping
patients get around the swelling of
lymphedema - Pittsburgh
Post Gazette – By Pohla Smith
Their
offices at Magee-Womens Hospital of UPMC are attached, so whenever she saw her
surgeon, Candace McGuire, breast cancer survivor Ellen Gainer went next door to
another UPMC program to be screened for lymphedema, using a technique designed
to stop swelling before it gets bad enough to interfere with the use of her
arm.
Lymphedema
is a buildup of fluid caused by a blockage in the lymphatic system that results
in a painful and incurable but controllable condition marked by swelling that
is usually found in an arm or a leg. Cancer, surgery, radiation or infection in
any area of the body near the lymph system can cause the blockage that results
in lymphedema, but in the United States it is most often associated with breast
cancer.
Ms.
Gainer, 47, of Whitehall, who works in the health and welfare department of
U.S. Steel Corp., underwent chemotherapy and then a lumpectomy and surgical
removal of 20 lymph nodes, six of them cancerous, in February 2011. She had her
first screening on the machine called an L-Dex for a baseline measurement of
her lymph fluid the day of her surgery. She subsequently underwent
radiation.
"The
amount of fluid kept getting larger with each measurement, so after the fifth
measurement they said maybe you should see Dr. [Atilla] Soran," she
said.
Dr.
Soran is a surgeon and director of UPMC's Lymphedema Education, Screening,
Early Detection and Prevention Program.
When
he began it in 2010 under an $80,000 grant from the Magee-Womens Hospital
Volunteer Service Board the program was the first in the world to do screenings
with the L-Dex, which, he said, is the only device approved by the Food and
Drug Administration to test patients for lymphedema. Manufactured by ImpediMed,
it uses electrodes that run on low electrical frequency and work something like
an EKG to measure the lymph fluid, which circulates through the body via lymph
vessels, picking up bacteria, viruses and waste products to be filtered through
the lymph nodes. The fluid is then returned to the bloodstream.
When
the L-Dex measures fluid levels on a scale of more than the normal range of
minus 10 to 10 units, the condition is called lymphedema even if there are no
easily seen signs of the disorder and treatment is started. That way the
lymphedema can be caught before it is painful and disabling.
"The
goal is to catch volume change before the clinical lymphedema appears," Dr.
Soran said. "If you can catch them early, the incidence [of lymphedema] changes
from 25 percent to 7 percent. There's less pain, less swelling, less cost,
better quality of life. ... When we catch these, the patient can start early
therapy, simple exercise, diet, garments and will be OK for a very long
time."
Exercise,
diet for those with a body mass index over 30 and compression garments are
standard treatment for patients with lymphedema. Other treatments include laser
therapy and compression pump therapy, which comprises intermittent, sequential
pumps with chambers that inflate one at a time while moving up the limb,
facilitating the movement of lymph fluid.
Ms.
Gainer had some arm swelling by the time of her fifth screening was diagnosed
as stage 1, grade 1 lymphedema, she said. She was prescribed physical therapy,
self-massage and then laser therapy. She also wore a compression garment on her
arm intermittently. "I did my first therapy for three times a week for three
weeks in February 2012 and then off for eight weeks, then for three times a
week for three weeks," she said. "Then I had a follow-up with Dr. Soran, and
there was no swelling in my arm. I was downgraded to stage 0, and he said to
keep an eye on me so I go back in a year." She still wears the garment
periodically.
Although
frequently not diagnosed, there will be more than 60,000 new cases of
lymphedema in the U.S. each year out of 230,000 new breast cancers, Dr. Soran
said. In Pennsylvania, there are more than 2,000 cases of lymphedema yearly out
of more than 10,000 new breast cancers, he said.
Since
starting the screening program, Dr. Soran and his personnel have done about 900
measurements, "and even if there's a short-term follow-up, we catch around 14
percent of patients without clinical lymphedema, and then we start early
therapy," he said.
Unfortunately,
the grant that covered the L-Dex and the automatic screenings of breast cancer
patients through 2011 has run out, he said, leaving many patients with no
insurance coverage. UPMC insurance covers the screenings, "but, unfortunately,
most [insurances] are not covering reimbursement, so patients have to pay or
are refusing to get the measurements. So now our numbers are going down, and
we'll see more with severe lymphedema." Nevertheless, all patients are being
offered the screenings.
Under
the protocol, the patient is screened before the surgery, every three to six
months over the next year, and every six to 12 months for five years. The cost
is $200 per measurement, Dr. Soran said.
Theoretically,
the screenings should continue for the rest of a patient's life as the risk of
developing lymphedema diminishes but never goes away.
"Seventy-five
percent of lymphedema [cases] may be diagnosed in five years," Dr. Soran said.
"Twenty five percent is the lifetime risk ... [it] would be better to measure
for a lifetime."
Ms.
Gainer believes her screenings were covered by the grant but says she'll
continue to have them even if she has to pay for them herself.
"I
would still be fine with that. I want to be sure I catch it before it becomes a
problem," she said.
She
also said she would re-commend the screenings to "anyone that's experiencing
any kind of symptoms. It's painless."
Pohla Smith:
[email protected] or 412-263-1228.
First
Published July 2, 2012 12:00 am
Read
more: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/health/helping-patients-get-around-the-swelling-of-lymphedema-642896/#ixzz24yxAsjGB
July
2, 2012
Scar
tissue, swelling problems for cancer survivors - Lexington
Herald Leader – By Claire Davies –
Breast cancer is
one of the most common cancers among American women. According to the American
Cancer Society, more than 289,000 U.S. women will be diagnosed in 2012.
Unfortunately, many of the 2.6 million survivors experience long-term side
effects of swelling, pain, thickened scar tissue and decreased flexibility
after treatment.
Swelling can occur
in the upper limbs and chest following removal of lymph nodes, trauma to the
lymph vessels through radiation, or infection. This swelling, known as
lymphedema, is the result of protein accumulating in the tissues. Those with
lymphedema might experience decreased flexibility in the hand, wrist or elbow,
or their clothes, rings or watches could become tight on one arm. It's
important to recognize these symptoms and seek medical advice as soon as
possible because early diagnosis and treatment improve the
condition.
Treatment of
lymphedema is called complete decongestive therapy, and it involves manual
lymph drainage, compression bandaging and garments (sleeves and/or glove), skin
and nail care, therapeutic exercises, infection education and self
treatment.
Referral to a
certified lymphedema therapist for an individualized program is essential to
treat the lymphedema appropriately.
Scar tissue can
develop and tighten in the incision area after breast cancer surgery, and the
area might become hypersensitive. This hypersensitivity frequently occurs at
the incision and drain site, and can make wearing a bra or clothing
painful.
ASTYM treatment is
a non-invasive soft tissue therapy using handheld tools to apply force to the
tissue. The therapy "remodels" the tissue and provides a desensitizing effect.
ASTYM treatment also may be used on other soft-tissue problems, such as
shoulder tendonitis and elbow epicondylitis. Recognizing signs of pain and
hypersensitivity and contacting an ASTYM- certified provider are important to
help decrease long-term symptoms.
Participating in
physical activity and an individualized exercise program improves range of
motion in the shoulder and stretches scar tissue. Movement of the joints and
muscles helps increase the lymph flow to move the lymph fluid. Exercise also
improves the feeling of well-being, contributes to increased energy levels and
helps maintain a healthy weight.
The key to
treatment of lymphedema and scar tissue is early referral to a physical
therapist specially trained to address the individual's needs and help minimize
pain, swelling and further formation of scar tissue.
Claire Davies is a
physical therapist with Central Baptist Hospital Outpatient Therapy
Services.
Read more here:
http://www.kentucky.com/2012/07/02/2245603/scar-tissue-swelling-problems.html#storylink=cpy
June
13, 2012
Liposuction
effective in treating submental lymphedema in patients with head
and neck cancer - News-Medical.net -
Liposuction is a novel and minimally
invasive procedure for treating persistent submentallymphedema in patients with previous
head and neck cancer,
according to an article published in the June 2012 issue of Otolaryngology-Head
and Neck Surgery.
"Submental
lymphedema is a common problem encountered by patients following treatment of
head and neck cancer," the authors state.
It
causes fluid deposition and persistent swelling of the soft tissues of the
neck, leading to disfigurement and functional deficits. The aim of the study is
to introduce the otolaryngologist-head and neck surgeon to the authors' new
surgical technique: the use of liposuction to treat patients with submental
lymphedema.
The
surgical technique involves making an incision into the neck and using
liposuction to remove fat and fluid from the treatment area. In the authors'
small study on 10 patients, the surgery was well-tolerated by patients
suffering submental lymphedema. The cohort had at least one year of cancer-free
follow-up prior to the procedure. No patients in the cohort developed a
recurrence in the neck, and there have been no complications. All 10 patients
were satisfied with the results of their procedure and would recommend it to
other patients, the authors' state.
The
authors conclude, "The procedure is well tolerated under local anesthesia and
in our hands has proven to be very effective, resulting in high patient
satisfaction. We plan to continue to offer this to our head and neck cancer
patients with submental lymphedema and encourage others to consider it as part
of their treatment strategy."
Source: American
Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery
June
20, 2012
Man
with 100-Pound Scrotum that Made Him Feel like a "Freak Says
'No' to Free Surgery Offer
-
Medical Daily – BY CHRISTINE
HS
A
Las Vegas man who has a 100 pound scrotum because of a rare condition that made
him feel like a "freak" has turned down an offer for free $1 million corrective
surgery to treat his scrotal lymphedema.
Wesley
Warren Jr. reportedly declined an opportunity to have the "Dr. Oz Show" pay for
the medical expenses for the surgery because he would have had to give up the
rights to his story, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The
47-year-old became famous after his gigantic scrotum was featured on the Howard
Stern Show and the Comedy Central program Tosh.0, and according to the
newspaper, Warren's new-found fame may have gone to his head as he appears to
be enjoying his local celebrity status.
"I'll
make a decision when I'm ready," Warren told the paper.
Firecracker
Films, the company that produced 'Big Fat Gypsy Weddings' has already signed a
contract to make a documentary about him.
Warren
weighs 400 pounds, with his scrotum accounting for a quarter of his weight. His
condition, which causes his scrotum to swell with watery fluid, makes it hard
for him to urinate because his penis is buried so deeply in his abnormal growth
and impossible to for him to have a normal sex life.
When
Warren was interviewed in October he became emotional as he described the pain
and humiliation of carrying the deformed genitals.
He
told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he suffered frequent depression and
health complications, and that he must wear a hooded sweatshirt on his legs
when he's out in public to contain his scrotum.
Warren
had told the paper last year that the only thing he wanted was to urinate like
a normal man and have a romantic relationship with a woman.
He
had also said that he was going public so that he could raise money to afford
an operation.
"I
don't like being a freak, who would?" he told the Review-Journal.
However,
six months after his story gained worldwide media attention the reporter
noticed a stark contrast in Warren's behavior compared to that last time he was
interviewed.
"The
Wesley Warren of today does not act like the somber Wesley Warren I interviewed
last fall," Paul Harasim of the paper wrote. "Rather than on the edge of tears,
he's seemingly enjoying his celebrity. He reminds you he'll soon appear on The
Learning Channel and that Fire Cracker Films of Great Britain signed him to a
contract for a documentary."
However,
Warren denies that he wants the celebrity spotlight more than his corrective
surgery.
"Who
would want to live like this?" Warren Jr. said. "I just don't want to die
during the operation."
Read
more at http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/10382/20120620/scrotum-wesley-warren-surgery-lymphedema.htm#OX5fPXxp62ECy9wl.99
June
19, 2012
Wesley
Warren Jr., Man With 100 Pound Scrotum, Turns Down
- International Business
Times –
This
is a duplicate of last article and think of earlier one too ,
sorry
June
13, 2012
Multitalented
Westborough mom – hospice volunteer, nurse practitioner, massge
therapist - Community Advocate – By Sue
Wambolt –
Westborough – Beth Terhune is a licensed, nationally
certified massage therapist and certified lymphedema therapist. She has
studied, practiced and mentored in the field of oncology massage, is a
hospice volunteer, and founder of the Abbott Road Project. She will also soon
be entering the Graduate School of Nursing at the UMass Medical Center in its
GEP program.
Before becoming a massage therapist, Terhune worked in
Silicon Valley, Cal. She came to Massachusetts to pursue a graduate degree in
history and to work as a senior research fellow at the Center for Knowledge
Communication in the Computer Science Department at UMass-Amherst.
In 2004, in a midlife career change, Terhune received a
diploma from the Bancroft School of Massage Therapy. Immediately following, she
trained in cancer work and in prenatal and postpartum work.
A year ago, Terhune and fellow therapists Donna Venuto,
of Healing Hands Muscular Therapy, and Kelly Burneson, of Balance
Rehabilitative Massage, created the Healing and Wellness Center in Westborough.
The women had been sharing space, running the Natural Healing Center off the
rotary in Westborough, but needed more space, so they joined forces and moved
to Chauncy Place on Lyman Street in Westborough.
In May of 2011, Terhune began offering intermittent
clinic days that provide no-cost access to trained oncology massage
practitioners for individuals with cancer. The Abbott Road Project was
established in honor of Terhune’s maternal grandmother, Geneva “Dynamite”
Brotherton, and her dream to create a place where all people were welcome,
regardless of socioeconomic status or background, and where individuals would
be comfortable regardless of the challenges being faced without judgment or
demand. (Abbott Road is a place in the town in eastern Washington where
Brotherton grew up and lived most of her adult life.)
During Abbott House clinic days, Terhune provides
oncology massage therapists an opportunity to come together in community, to
reinforce standards of practice, and to support local individuals living with
cancer and their caregivers with free access to safe, comfort-oriented oncology
massage services. The clinic days are very special, Terhune said, with
hour-long massage sessions and yoga classes for those living with
cancer.
“What I love about the Abbott Road Project clinic days
is that they are days of breathing room and giving,” Terhune said. “We have had
a number of those who have received massage turn around and volunteer their own
time at other clinic days.”
The massage sessions are by appointment only, and each
individual’s medical teams are involved in planning treatment sessions to
accommodate medical devices, medical histories, current cancer treatment
protocols underway and surgical interventions.
Terhune chooses a nonprofit to spotlight each clinic
day (for example: Lucy’s Love Bus, the PINK Revolution, 15-40, and the Virginia
Thurston Healing Garden) so that the therapists can learn more about groups
that support their clients and their clients’ caregivers. Additionally, it
allows for clients and their families to learn about other support services
that might be available to them. Additionally, there is art created on clinic
days. Inspired by Robin Batchelder, of Sparks Art Studio in Hopkinton, the
therapists, volunteers and participants all end up working on art projects
throughout the day. According to Terhune, it is a wonderful way to provide the
clients with a way to ease back out into the work and to allow for space for
them to network with each other without outside pressures.
Quilts have been part of the Abbott Road Project since
the beginning. One of Terhune’s clients brought a quilt for the first clinic
day – they have it and another alongside for people to hold and sign, if so
moved. The quilts have also traveled with Terhune and inspired oncology massage
therapists around the country about the project and its meaning.
“There aren’t words that describe how this work feels,”
Terhune said. “I have the honor and privilege of holding people when they are
traveling some of the most complicated pieces of their lives and helping them
come to a place where they don’t feel like diagnoses but, rather, feel like
themselves despite diagnoses, if even for a little while. It is a very
humbling, beautiful kind of work to be able to do.”
Since the Abbott Road Project began, 25 oncology
massage therapists, five nurses and physician’s assistants and 50 lay
volunteers have volunteered their time with the project. In all, over 70
individuals living with cancer have benefited from the services provided (with
some returning more than once and some returning to volunteer).
Anyone interested in participating in the clinics can
email [email protected] or call the Healing &
Wellness Center, 508-366-8133, ext. 2.
The ability to
participate in art projects on clinic days has provided a nice way for
therapists, patients and volunteers to connect – “Windblessings” are just one
example.
July 12, 2012
The
Sully Side of Sports: Former Panther lets nothing slow her down
- Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier (blog) – By
JIM SULLIVAN
Deborah Cordner Carson tried to run away from
lymphedema, the condition that ended her track and field career at Northern
Iowa a decade ago.
Today, Carson confronts it, chases it and sprints past
it.
Friday, the 32-year-old former Panther will begin
competition in the Reebok CrossFit in Carson, Calif. It’s a three-day mix of
workouts and competitions that can range from push ups to 400-meter sprints to
ocean swimming to softball throws. Some of the events are revealed early; a few
are surprises.
“The known and the unknown,” said Carson, who now lives
in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area. “They make it, like, dramatic.”
This much is known about Deborah Cordner Carson. She
will compete. She will confront the disease that’s caused swelling in her leg
for 10 years. She will not let it stand in her way.
“I always felt like lymphedema chose me,” said Carson
this week. “But I came to a point in my life where I chose lymphedema. It
sounds weird. But, if I think about it that way, it’s like I choose to wrap my
leg. I choose to wear the garment and put it on in the morning. It’s not like
lymphedema has control of me. I feel like I have control.”
Reaching that outlook was not exactly a sprint to the
finish line for Carson.
Ten years ago, she was a good 400 runner for UNI, good
enough to win a Missouri Valley Conference outdoor championship in 2000. Then
she noticed a lump in her groin. It was surgically removed, but then the
episodes of swelling in her leg began and wouldn’t stop.
After one serious instance, Deborah Cordner sought
medical help. Finally, the word came from a specialist. She had lymphedema, a
condition that affects roughly 140 million people worldwide. Swollen limbs is
one of the symptoms.
A young track athlete was one of those 140 million. One
girl in the prime of her athletic career heard the medical advice – give up her
sport. So she did.
“It wasn’t like I was making money doing it,” said
Deborah Cordner Carson a decade later. “At that point, track was my soul. It
was what I did. It was who I was. To have someone tell me I have to stop doing
it at this moment was devastating.
“I guess I took it for granted.”
She went through a time of denial. Eventually, Carson
began doing what she needed to do, such as wrapping her leg and wearing a
protective garment to keep down the swelling. After moving back to the Twin
Cities in Minnesota, she met Patrick Carson, an Iowa native.
The man who became her husband gave her words to live
by during those moments when she asked, “Why me?”
Essentially, Patrick told her, “Why not you? I don’t
think I’ve seen anybody else as strong as you are.”
Said Deborah Cordner Carson, “It kind of empowered me.
It made me feel as strong as I am. I guess there’s a reason why I have this. I
can deal with it.
“It’s OK. It’s just my life. I have to take every day
as it comes and do what I have to do with my leg and deal with it the next
day.”
Carson dealt with a serious case of cellulitis along
the way. That didn’t stop her, either. Over the years, she traveled from no
physical activity to walking to running. By 2009, she had discovered CrossFit.
Hesitant at first, Carson began competing.
A year ago, Carson finished third in the North Central
Regional and qualified for national competition. That’s where she found out
that ocean swimming was an event.
She didn’t know how to swim. She withdrew.
A year later, Carson qualified again for the CrossFit
Games. Part of her training? Ocean swimming - wrapping and stocking and
all.
“I had to figure out how to make it work,” said
Carson.
Soon, Carson will figure out the rest of the speech
she’ll be giving in September. She’ll deliver the keynote address during the
opening ceremony for the National Lymphedema Network conference in
Dallas.
Once upon a time, Carson was reluctant to talk about
lymphedema. For a while, her CrossFit coach in St. Paul didn’t know she had it.
Those days are gone.
“I was super excited,” she said. “The cool thing is,
the doctors and scientific people don’t want me to sit there and give
scientific information. They want me to share my story – show the human side
and how I cope and do what I do.”
It’s a running story with no finish line in
sight.
“It means a lot to me to make it to this point in my
life where I’m doing something very physically demanding and mentally
demanding,” said Deborah Cordner Carson. “I mean, for a while, I didn’t think
I’d do anything. It means a lot to me to overcome what happened in my last year
at Northern Iowa.”
July 14, 2012 - You have to join
something to get this article - sorry
Boutique
Caters to Cancer Patients - Voices News –
Specialists will be available to
fit lymphedema compression sleeves and
garments, and for those experiencing hair loss, to assist in the selection and
fitting of wigs, hair pieces and bangs, turbans, scarves, hats and sleep caps,
and scalp and wig care
...
July 15, 2012
NUMC
to Offer
Lymphedema
Therapy to Breast Cancer Surgery Patients - Patch.com
–
Lymphedema is an abnormal
accumulation of protein-rich fluid which causes chronic inflammation of
affected tissue.
Arthur Gianelli, the President/CEO of the NuHealth
System, announced the start of a lymphedema therapy service to be offered in
the department of physical medicine and rehabilitation at the
Nassau
University Medical Center
(NUMC) to women suffering from the debilitating effects following breast
cancer surgery.
Lymphedema is an abnormal accumulation of protein-rich
fluid which causes chronic inflammation of affected tissue. Lymphedema is a
common side effect of breast cancer treatment in particular. While it is not
life threatening, it is however uncomfortable with numbness and infection
possibilities.
“Under the leadership of Lyn Weiss, MD, chair, and Lyn
Alkes, OTR, RN, certified lymphatic therapist, women suffering from a common
side effect of breast cancer will benefit from a combination of techniques
which include manual compression, lymphatic massage, compression bandages
and/or customized garments and remedial exercises, helping to restore optimum
function to women following breast cancer surgery,” said Gianelli. “It is very
important to treat lymphedema as soon as it develops in order to avoid and
control complications going forward.”
“We are delighted to offer this new and much needed
service to help make a difference in a woman’s life, especially those
recovering following breast cancer surgery," Dr. Weiss said. "Ms. Alkes
underwent extensive training to gain proficiency in treating these patients.
This therapy will help to relieve discomfort and pain , help to restore optimum
function and improve their lives.”
Decongestion therapy consists of stimulating the skin
and the underlying multitude of lymphatic vessels by a well trained hand of a
certified lymphatic therapist. Customized bandages are applied at the end of
the treatment session with the goal to minimize the re-accumulation of fluid
and to reshape the limb so that it resembles the unaffected limb. The
compression sleeve is an elasticized sleeve, customized to patient’s limb and
can be used alone or with manual lymphatic drainage.
For additional information of for a consultation,
please call 516-572-6533. Lymphatic therapy service is covered by most forms of
insurance, with bandages or compression garments provided partly or on a
sliding scale.
July 21, 2012
Hull
teen seeks treatment for rare condition - Online
Athens – by Erin France
Battling sickness is nothing new to Tyler Lavender. The
17-year-old has had to do so most of his life.
As a toddler, Tyler and his mom, Greta Roland, spent a
lot of time at Scottish Rite Children’s Medical Center in Atlanta. Doctors
tested Tyler for several rare genetic diseases, but didn’t diagnose him with
primary lymphedema until after his legs started to swell in middle
school.
The swelling built up slowly as fluid containing the
body’s bacteria, chemicals and other wastes collected in his legs. Family and
friends thought at first he was putting on weight. But his legs continued to
expand.
“After eighth grade they became big, like huge,” Tyler
said.
Typically, the human body flushes waste out in urine.
With lymphedema, the waste collects, expanding the skin and making movement
difficult. The genetic condition increases Tyler’s chance for forming blood
clots in his legs and healing slows, making even small abrasions or bug bites a
site for a potential infection.
But lymphedema hasn’t just damaged his body. Tyler’s
spirit suffers as well.
As his condition worsened, school bullies picked on
Tyler. He fought back at times, but eventually decided to leave school and
complete his education at home.
“I’ll be honest, I’ve had suicidal thoughts about it,”
Tyler said. “I haven’t had them recently, but it has brought me down to the most
depressive state I can think of.”
People see him and stare, he said.
“They don’t look at me,” he said. “They look at my
legs.”
Tyler and his mom live in Hull, where Roland works from
home. She telecommutes, earning money by managing websites and Facebook pages
for local companies and bands.
The money Roland pulls in isn’t enough to cover Tyler’s
medical costs, so she enrolled her son in Medicaid. Some people view Medicaid
as a way for lazy people to get health care, but that isn’t the case for Tyler,
she said.
“He is disabled,” Roland said.
Medicaid has been a mixed blessing. The program paid
for dentist visits and sessions with a counselor when Tyler’s depression
mounted, Roland said, but it’s also stopped her son from getting the best
care.
While Georgia doctors are skilled at treating
lymphedema in the arms, health professionals recommended that Tyler seek care
at Siskin Hospital in Chattanooga, Tenn.
However, Roland said, Medicaid doesn’t cover
out-of-state doctors’ visits.
Siskin Hospital’s
month-long inpatient treatment program would teach her and Tyler how to treat
his lymphedema at home. There are ways to wrap his legs, and certain exercises
that help drain the fluid and manage the condition, Roland said. Left
untreated, the lymphedema will travel up Tyler’s body, enlarging the skin
around his pelvis and stomach.
Roland has applied three times for a Medicaid waiver.
She’s called Gov. Nathan Deal and U.S. Rep. Paul Broun asking for their help to
get her son to Chattanooga, she said.
She’s still waiting to hear if the latest Medicaid
waiver application will be approved.
“Of course I’m going to fight,” Roland said. “We’ve
been fighting for him his whole life.”
For more information about Tyler, visit
http://on.fb.me/Mz9F9p.