Autumn Newsletter 2023

“I was diagnosed and treated for breast cancer in 2015 and all went well. I did need a second surgery to remove the last few cancer cells from the breast tissue and all the lymph nodes after the one selected for testing was positive. None of the remaining lymph nodes showed cancer and I was reassured at the the team’s thoroughness.

I thought no more of it until I started getting a frozen shoulder and my doctor referred me to LewisManning Hospice Care. I was fitted for a sleeve and glove and carried on as usual as the shoulder started improving! The arm would swell and get uncomfortable in hot weather and when I used the arm a lot, but it tended to go down on its own. I was having more trouble with the side effects of my medicine and severe hormonal issues since chemotherapy threw me into menopause rather unceremoniously.

Fast forward to Spring 2022 and my arm and hand suddenly became more swollen than they had ever been and I couldn’t manage it at all. I was at a loss since it was now 7 years past treatment and I struggled to accept it was affecting me again. My physiotherapist persuaded me to get in touch with the clinic again, although I didn’t know if I was still eligible to see them. When I got an appointment, I

arrived in a bit of a state and they consoled me saying that they could make it better… and they did! But not just my arm- they helped me in numerous ways to feel positive and able to move on. They listened to me and we talked about everything. I looked forward to my appointments.

The therapist talked through the new improvements and methods now used in treatments and I was fortunate to have 3 weeks of intensive light, suction

and massage therapy. She took the time to find a glove and sleeve that fit me perfectly and discussed something I’d read about secondary breast cancer and did an examination to allay my fears. She finished by inviting my husband in so she could teach him how to do the massage technique. By the end of it my arm and hand looked so much better and I felt so much better in myself. It helped me realise the connection between the two and I had a renewed sense of ‘I deserve and need self-care’.

“THE TEAM AT LEWISMANNING DO A FANTASTIC JOB WITH THE PRACTICAL LYMPHOEDEMA ISSUES BUT ARE ALSO VERY ‘PEOPLE CENTERED’ AND CONCERNED FOR THE ‘WHOLE PATIENT’, INCLUDING THE WHOLE FAMILY. THEY WERE A GODSEND!”