The Lymphatic System is important for your Immune System to protect you.

 Lymphedema happens when lymph fluid builds up in body tissue because the lymphatic system is damaged or blocked. These following things can cause the system to not work well:

• Tumor
• Scar tissue from surgery
• Removal of lymph nodes and disruption of lymph vessels
• Tissue changes from radiation
• Chemotherapy side effects
• Infection or slow healing
• Obesity or higher fat to muscle ratio

Sometimes, symptoms might seem small and you might not even see them on your body. Many people might ignore them, thinking it is just a normal part of their cancer treatment.  Sometimes, symptoms show up right away, but other times, they might not come until months or even years after cancer treatment.

• Feeling of heaviness in a part of the body (arms, legs, etc.)
• Swelling (clothes may feel a little tighter)
• Tight feeling in a part of the body
• Changes in skin texture and appearance (dry, thickening, redness, etc.)
• Sensation changes (pain, numbness, tingling, pins/needles, itchiness, temperature changes)
• Joint tightness or difficulty with moving effectively
• Loss of definition in body part (can’t see tendons, veins, joint creases, etc.)
• Frequent infections (cellulitis, dermatitis, inflammation, etc.)

• Movement Exercise: maintain full joint movement and keep your body pumping
• Hydration: keeps body systems circulating, flushes out toxins, critical to organ function and cell recovery
• Avoid Tight Clothing: allow body to move and good fluid flow
• Muscle Strengthening: strong muscles store more good water and help with system pumping
• Skin Care & Moisturizing: avoid breaks and cuts in the skin to prevent infection and inflammation; use pH lotions/soaps at 5.0-6.0 to maintain skin’s protective barrier
• Eat Clean & Natural: avoid fructose sugars and saturated fats, eat natural low-fat foods provide good energy fuel for the body to work well
• Manage Body Temperature: extreme temperatures of hot or cold cause slower pumping of all body systems
• Avoid Risky Behavior: smoking, alcohol, caffeine, drugs, and highly processed foods are damaging to your body
• Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD): specialized drainage technique performed by yourself or a professional to address blockage to get lymph vessels and nodes working better

• Physical Exam: patient report of symptoms, physical examination and measurement of any visual changes in the body
• Lymphoscintigraphy: nuclear medicine imaging involving dye injection to visualize lymphatic vessels and lymph nodes
• Magnetic Resonance Lymphangiography (MRL): imaging involving gadolinium-based contrast injected into lymph nodes to visualize and map the lymphatic system
• Bioimpedence Spectrography (BIS): non-invasive technology that accurately measures a patient’s total body water, extracellular and intercellular fluid volume and body composition to detect limb lymphedema and monitor body changes