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DiscussionAnyone experience regional recurrence of stage 1 ER+ BC < 5 years?
Breast Cancer | Last Active: Jan 25 10:18am | Replies (28)Comment receiving replies
Replies to "Hi @sarahmh Please share what exercises you are doing for breast lymphedema. If you are doing..."
Oh, I'm sorry you have breast lymphedema, too. My case is thankfully very mild, probably because my breast surgeon was so proactive. We did a baseline SOZO before my lumpectomy and sentinel lymph node biopsy, and then again after. It didn't detect any lymphedema, but the physical therapist who saw me also did a very thorough examination and noticed the beginning of breast lymphedema (I had minor swelling of the breast, and 'orange peel' skin). She taught me some exercises, but I honestly haven't done them for ages, because I now do a class called Healthy Steps, which has most of the same moves. The physical therapist also made me a DIY swell spot, and I just make new ones as they get grubby. Mine is about the size of a credit card, and I just randomly move it around to different spots inside my bra. I would like to order an actual Swell Spot that covers my entire breast, though. I also wear a tight-fitting sports bra at all times (I've always slept in soft bras with no underwire anyway, it's just more comfortable for me since I have big, floppy boobs). The PT did try using kinesiology tape cut into a long, octopus-type shape, but my skin hates almost all adhesives and it gave me a rash. I see my breast surgeon's NP every six months and she always checks out the lymphedema. As I lay on my back, she will do very gentle massage directly on my breast for only a minute, and we can see immediate results. I should do massage myself at home; I would guess only five minutes per day would yield great results. Here are some links to all this:
Kelly Reed is a PT with lots of great YouTube videos about breast lymphedema. Here's one that shows some exercises:
Here's one about DIY swell spots:
One about using K-tape:
And massage:
This is a link to Healthy Steps:
https://www.gohealthysteps.com
I'm still kinda worried about developing worse lymphedema because it can appear years after cancer treatment, so I also do easy things like getting blood draws and pressures done only on the unaffected side, and wearing a compression sleeve while flying. But the tight bra, Healthy Steps class, and DIY swell spot are doing great for me so far.
Good luck!