During a mastectomy or lumpectomy, your surgeon may choose to remove lymph nodes in your armpit in order to make sure there are no residual cancer cells and to reduce the chance of breast cancer recurring. As a result, lymphedema—a chronic swelling that can occur after surgical removal of lymph nodes— can be a common side effect of breast cancer surgery.
Let’s start with the basics. What exactly are lymph nodes? What is your lymphatic system and why do you need it? Lymph nodes are small organs filled with lymph–a colorless fluid made up of white blood cells. You have lymph nodes in your neck, armpit, chest, belly, and even your groin. Lymph circulates between these lymph nodes and throughout your entire body via the lymphatic system, which works to filter out toxins in your body to fight infection. If your lymphatic system isn’t working right, your body can’t fight infections.
And if you have lymph nodes removed in surgery, such as breast cancer surgery, it can impact your lymphatic system in the form of lymphedema. Lymphedema is characterized by the buildup of lymphatic fluid that causes painful and sometimes debilitating swelling in the affected limb. The main symptom of lymphedema is swelling (often in your limbs), which can cause problems fitting into clothes, or jewelry and watches starting to feel tight. At first, the swelling may come and go. It may get worse during the day and then go down overnight. At its worst, things like brushing your teeth or buttoning your shirt can become difficult. Lymphedema can be painful, give you a feeling of heaviness and tightness, restrict your range of motion, and cause infection.
In addition to the discomfort, lymphedema can be embarrassing and make you feel self-conscious. Your appearance may change due to swelling and in some cases, you may have to restrict your activities.
Lymphedema develops in stages (from Stage 0 to Stage 3) and once it has reached Stage 2, it becomes a chronic condition that requires management of uncomfortable symptoms for the rest of your life. The treatment requires patients to make considerable lifestyle changes and maintain daily and lifelong care to decrease swelling and prevent swelling flare-ups and infections.
Fifty percent of breast cancer patients who have lymph nodes removed in surgery are likely to get lymphedema. A recent study showed that Black women are 3.5 times more likely to get diagnosed with lymphedema compared to white women. Since Black women are significantly more likely than white women to be diagnosed at a more advanced stage, have larger tumors, and cancer in their lymph nodes, they are more likely to have lymph nodes removed in breast surgery.
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At this point, the mainstay of lymphedema treatment is compression garments coupled with manual lymphatic drainage—a special form of massage therapy.
With that said, what’s the good news?
Early detection can change the game! We now have a technology from a company called ImpediMed that measures and tracks your fluid buildup in your at-risk limb. SOZO® is capable of detecting excess fluid at the subclinical level, where lymphedema is