One of the biggest possible surgical interventions that a woman may have to face is breast surgery. While breast surgeries may be performed for both cosmetic and cancer removal reasons, the kind of weakness and side effects that each face are often vastly different.
Today, we’re going to dive deeper into physical therapy for breast cancer surgeries.
Types of Breast Surgeries You May Undergo
Most women undergo breast surgeries because of the detection of cancerous cells or tumors or as preventative measures against future cancer. This includes surgeries like breast tissue biopsy, lymph node biopsies, lumpectomies, mastectomies, lymph node removals, and breast reconstructions.
Some of these surgeries only remove portions of the breast, such as lumpectomies, lymph node removals, and biopsies. Mastectomies, however, remove all or most of the breast tissue, leaving the patient with large scars.
Since these surgeries can have side-effects that limit movement and flexibility, ranging from radical to minor — physical therapy can be a key tool for post-operative rehab.
Side-Effects of Breast Surgeries
Breast surgeries have a major impact on how the women who have them move, stretch, lift, and go about their daily routine. That’s why women who have any kind of breast surgery are advised not to do any heavy lifting for at least 4 weeks after they have the surgery.
Additionally, lumpectomies and nymph lode removal surgeries require patients to not jostle the breast tissue for about two weeks. With breast reconstruction, patients can be asked not to lift their arms up or to engage in intense activity until cleared by the surgeon.
Combined with the weakness from the surgery and disuse post-op, side-effects like pain and soreness mean that physical therapy is necessary. Why is that so? Let’s learn more about what physical therapy does.
How Physical Therapy Can Treat Side-Effects
Post-op physical therapy can help in a few ways. First, once you get the go-ahead from your surgeon to start PT, our physical therapists in Augusta can assess your condition to see where you’re at in your recovery. This will help them provide physical therapy services that are curated to your specific abilities.
Based on their expertise, a physical therapist will increase the level of exercises they make you perform and combine treatment for musculoskeletal pain to relieve it. This allows them to facilitate recovery as well as provide pain reduction measures to help you for the time being.
However, physical therapists are often considered essential for breast surgery patients because of the mental health benefits they offer too. Having breast surgery can take a huge toll on women’s mental wellbeing, which affects their motivation to work out.
In addition, if the patient in question has been dealing with cancer, they may feel too fatigued to exercise their muscles at home. Get physical therapy at our center in Augusta to work with a PT expert that understands all your different needs.
We also offer sports injuries treatments and PT for active living for seniors!