(Newswire.net — July 27, 2016) — People who have managed to beat cancer are understandably grateful for their good fortune and care received from medical personnel. Often, their troubles are not entirely over, though.
Cancer can involve some negative side effects that carry on well after the primary illness is gone. One of those side effects is lymphedema, which refers to swelling in the arms or legs due to lymph fluid retention.
It’s unsightly and often incredibly painful, but doctors may have found a solution in liposuction.
Is Liposuction the Cure?
Liposuction has developed a fairly negative connotation, but that might change now that it’s been identified as a possible way to eliminate lymphedema in cancer survivors. The procedure has been performed on more than 50 patients, all of which saw success.
There have been several instances in which liposuction was identified as the clear cure. Sharne Willoughby, a citizen of New Zealand and cervical cancer survivor, shared her story with Stuff.co.nz, a New Zealand news outlet.
After beating cancer, Willoughby spent most of her days devising excuses to stay home so she wouldn’t have to walk on a painful leg that was swollen with lymphedema. If the pain wasn’t enough to keep her from a normal life, the embarrassment about being seen with an elephant-sized leg was.
She had developed secondary lymphedema, which is a common result of having one’s lymph nodes removed or damaged during cancer treatment. Willoughby was unable to get regular therapy to avoid the swelling, so her condition worsened significantly over the decade following her illness.
At the worst point, her right leg weighed 12.5 kilograms (27.5 lbs) more than her left. She couldn’t work, wear shoes, or dress normally. “There was absolutely nothing I did that wasn’t in some way impacted by the lymphedema,” she said. “It was debilitating, both physically and emotionally. I felt so uncomfortable physically, and felt uncomfortable around other people.”
Eventually, she learned about some successful cases of patients who had undergone liposuction to relieve the swelling and save their leg. Her procedure was successful too, and Willoughby has been able to reclaim her life. She works full time now and travels as often as she can.
How the Procedure Works
The surgery is a little different for every patient and depends on the severity of the condition. In general, it’s an outpatient procedure that does not have to be done in the hospital.
The surgery takes six to seven hours including prep and post-operative processes. Patients are not put to sleep but are rendered completely numb to any pain.
During the process, surgeons extract between six and 11 pounds of fat using a pressurized stream of saline solution and a canula inserted through a small incision. It’s a deliberately slow process so it won’t damage surrounding tissue such as blood vessels and muscles.
Challenges of This Procedure
Lymphedema following a chronic illness is not highly common. It seems be entirely avoidable with proper treatment, so it usually afflicts patients who haven’t had access to regular post-treatment therapy.
That’s part of the reason there hasn’t been a lot of research to support liposuction as a cure for lymphedema, and insurance companies continue to regard it as cosmetic. This is unfortunate because it’s very expensive to pay out of pocket.
Patients who undergo this all but necessary treatment often end up with bills totaling between $8,000 and $12,000 for the surgery.
Patients who struggle with lymphedema find hope in this procedure, and fortunately, awareness is growing. As more successful cases are recorded, insurance companies may recognize this surgery as entirely necessary and not just cosmetic.