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On February 24-25, 2011, the American Cancer Society convened a meeting of international research and clinical experts to address breast cancer rehabilitation. Jill Binkley, Executive Director of TurningPoint, participated as a planning committee member, presenter and patient advocate. Other planning committee members were:
- Kathryn Schmitz, PhD, MPH, FACSM, associate professor at University of Pennsylvania. Katie is well known for her research on the safety and benefits of exercise related to breast cancer and lymphedema.
- Nicole L. Stout, MPT, CLT-LANA, a clinician and researcher at the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, MD. Nicole's studies utilize a model of ongoing surveillance to allow early identification of morbidity associated with breast cancer treatment. Her research has demonstrated the effectiveness of early detection and treatment of lymphedema.
- Robert A. Smith, PhD, a cancer epidemiologist and Director of Cancer Screening at the National Office of the American Cancer Society in Atlanta, Georgia.
- Kimberly Andrews, Cancer Control Science Department at the American Cancer Society and is responsible for the review, updating, and publication of ACS early detection and prevention guidelines.
In addition to the planning committee, a panel of 12 invited experts from United States, Canada, Australia and Sweden participated in the meeting. Panel members included breast cancer experts from the fields of physical therapy, exercise physiology, nursing, surgery, radiation oncology, plastic surgery and physical medicine and rehabilitation. Stakeholders from many national, professional and advocacy organizations were also included in discussions.(see below)
Presentations at the meeting highlighted the large number of physical survivorship issues faced by women with breast cancer. Common physical side effects of treatment were addressed, including pain, fatigue, shoulder and trunk problems, lymphedema, chemotherapy-induced neuropathy (numbness and tingling), arthralgias (joint pain), osteoporosis and weight gain. In addition to the short-term effects of treatment, it was noted that over 40% of women continue to have significant physical issues many years post-treatment. The scientific evidence related to the role of rehabilitation and exercise for treatment of each of these issues was presented. Early detection, rehabilitation and exercise have been shown to be important in preventing or reducing many of the physical issues related to breast cancer treatment. For this reason, ongoing surveillance post-operatively appears to be an important aspect of rehabilitation care.
While evidence supports the role of rehabilitation and exercise during and after treatment for breast cancer, it is not included in the care plan for the majority of women. The panel will continue working to develop recommendations for breast cancer rehabilitation based on the scientific evidence, and will publish the results of the meeting in a series of scientific publications in coming months.
TurningPoint is proud to be part of this exciting and ground-breaking work to increase awareness of the role of rehabilitation for women with breast cancer. The support of the American Cancer Society has been outstanding, and is made possible through funding from the Longaberger Horizon of Hope campaign.
(Stakeholders included representatives from organizations such as the American Society of Clinical Oncology, American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer, American Physical Therapy Association, American Academy of Physical Medicine, American College of Sports Medicine, American Occupational Therapy Association, Oncology Nursing Society, Center for Disease Control, American Cancer Society, National Accreditation Program for Breast Centers, Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Livestrong, Living Beyond Breast Cancer, National Cancer Institute Office of Cancer Survivorship, BreastCancer.org, American Lyphedema Framework Project, National Lymphedema Network and YMCA of the United States.) |
