The month of October is designated as “Breast Cancer Awareness” month. In light of this, we would like to make you aware of some of the certainties of breast cancer.
- Breast cancer is the fifth most common cause of cancer-related deaths world-wide.
- In the U.S. breast cancer jumps to third in the ranking of cancer-related deaths.
- Women in the U.S. have a 1 in 8 chance of being diagnosed with breast cancer.
How does all of this relate to Shoulder Performance and Rehab?
Until recently, we had no idea of the shoulder complications that are created as a by-product of the treatments and procedures that are used to help breast cancer patients in their fight against this dreadful disease. In Denver, at the American Physical Therapy Association’s annual conference, we were approached by a nurse, who bought a Rotater and said that she wanted to use it with her breast cancer patients.
Shoulder complications in breast cancer patients?
We were intrigued and asked her to explain what she was talking about. Her explanation and subsequent research on our part has revealed to us that there are indeed a number of women who face shoulder mobility issues due to the removal of the lymph nodes that are located under their arms.
This procedure is often done to prevent the spread of the cancer cells to the lymphatic system and the rest of the body. The side effects produced are:
- the possible development of lymphedema – the retention of body fluids in the affected limb
- shoulder mobility issues due to the need to limit the movement of the shoulder during the healing process which increases the likelihood of scar tissue development in the shoulder – this is known as adhesive capsulitis (frozen shoulder)
- physical therapy may be required to deal with both the lymphedema and mobility issues
Our research led us to Trish Muse and her free e-booklet: 20 Tips to Safe and Effective Exercise Programming for Breast Cancer Survivors
Trish Muse has a list of credentials a mile long and has devoted a great deal of her life to helping breast cancer patients deal with the rehabilitation issues resulting from the treatment of breast cancer. We have been in awe of her commitment and effort to develop a system/procedure dedicated to the breast cancer survivor. Please take the time to investigate her free e-booklet as well as the other products she offers.
Pink Rotaters
We are still in the process of developing our “pink Rotaters” which will debut soon. As I stated in an earlier posting, we will set aside a specified percentage of revenues of these “pink Rotaters” which will be donated to help fund Breast Cancer Research. We will alert you as soon as all the parts of the process are in place. Quickly, we hope.