Shoulder pain/cancer

Pain & Rehab Forum [Moderated]
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Hello guys

Some context : My mother is a cancer patient (breast) and she had a double mastectomy 10 years ago and her doctors plastic surgeon/oncologist/Ortho said that she should bear no load on the left arm ( the one with most lymph nodes extracted) because her arm will swell up I dont know if they meant just post surgery or for a lifetime and how legit this statement is. She did some PT and regained some Rom on the left arm but still can’t raise it over head fully. Im not trying to get her to be a powerlifter but she really feels restricted/useless for day to day tasks and getting stronger obviously at a very slow rate and pain free is a good option to help with that. I know that this might be hard to answer on a forum but if you have dealt or know of similar cases that had successful outcomes would really get my hopes up.

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There’s generally not a lifelong restriction in loading post radical mastectomy and lymph node dissection. There’s a risk of lymphedema post op, though this does not seem to be reduced with activity restriction vs. exercise. In fact, exercise may reduce risk of this complication.

I cannot comment on your mom’s specific case, but would recommend following up with her healthcare provider for clearance. There are very few conditions that are permanent, absolute contraindications to lifting.

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