Vim & Vigor - Fall 2017 - Parrish Medical Center - 13

as fluid accumulation can be off-putting
to partners; and even simple acts like
choosing clothing, which doesn't fit
properly because of disfiguration from
the condition. Infection is a constant
cause of concern, because the decreased
flow of lymphatic fluid also compromises
the immune system.
The condition prevents people from
working and socializing and keeps
them in constant pain, Repicci says.

Common BUT
UNKNOWN

Lymphedema sufferers number
between 5 million and 10 million in
the United States, Rockson says.
The condition affects more people
than multiple sclerosis, Lou Gehrig's
disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis,
or ALS), AIDS and Parkinson's disease
combined, but it is largely unknown
among the public, Repicci says.
"How could we have a disease that
affects up to 10 million people in this
country and yet has such a wall of
silence around it?" he asks. "Even people who have it are unaware of the disease they have," because receiving an
accurate diagnosis can be challenging.
Rockson says the disease is overlooked for several reasons. First,
the condition is generally not lifethreatening, and it often appears in
the context of a life-threatening disease such as cancer.
"It can have a tendency to be underrecognized because, in the mind of the
clinician, it becomes more background
noise," he says.
He cited the reluctance of doctors and cancer surgeons to recognize lymphedema as a complication
of cancer treatment because it seems
like an implicit criticism of the treatment itself.
Finally, and importantly, the
condition "historically hasn't had
what I call 21st-century treatments,"
Rockson says. Available treatments
are effective, but they are not as

simple as going to the pharmacy and
picking up a prescription.

Recovery and
PREVENTION

Most of the available treatments are
physical ones, such as massage to move
fluid from the tissues, compression
techniques to further mobilize the fluid,
and laser-based therapies.
"All are designed to physically stimulate the lymphatic system to be more
active," Rockson says.
People who have been treated for cancer can be monitored and tested during
the first year after treatment to detect
early signs of lymphedema and possibly
prevent the condition. If compression
therapy is used at the optimal time, the
condition can be prevented or reversed.

Telling THE WORLD

Sometimes doctors are unable to diagnose lymphedema because they receive
little training related to the condition
during medical school, Repicci says.
LE&RN is pressing for physician certification programs and training related
to lymphedema.
Bates wants to help LE&RN raise
money for research. In an interview with
the organization, she said her dream was
to go to Congress "and have a chamber
full of people who are suffering from
lymphedema stand up in front of that
committee and say, 'We have lymphedema. We are suffering. Please help us.'"
When that happens, Bates said,
"I want to be there with them to add
my name." ■

CANCER and
GENETICS
Kathy Bates has been diagnosed with
both ovarian and breast cancers, and
the actress told People magazine that
the latter "runs like a river through
my family." She and her relatives are
not alone; families with hereditary
breast and ovarian cancer syndrome
usually have several members with at
least one of those types of cancer.
Some factors that can indicate
genetic predisposition to the cancers
include cases of premenopausal
breast cancer in the family, multiple
family members developing breast or
ovarian cancer, and occurrences of
male breast cancers, says Bobbie J.
Rimel, MD, a member of the Society
of Gynecologic Oncology.
Two genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2,
account for the vast majority of
cases of breast and ovarian cancers,
Rimel says. When working correctly,
those genes help repair DNA damage. But mutations in the genes can
result in a lack of a repair mechanism
for cells, which makes the cells more
likely to develop genetic alterations
that can lead to cancer. Those who
have the BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations have a much higher risk than
the general population of developing
breast and ovarian cancers.
Bates' mother and niece had
breast cancer, and her aunt died
from it. She told People that she
tested negative for genetic mutations, but even in that situation, she
said, "you can't assume you're OK."

CALL

Life with Lymphedema
Anyone with lymphedema can benefit from Parrish Healthcare's
specialized intervention program. To learn more, call 321-268-6181.

FALL 2017

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