Local doctor offers new Lymphedema prevention

Breast cancer patients in the Longmont area now have access to cutting-edge technology that could cut off serious post-surgery complications. 

At the Rocky Mountain Cancer Centers, located at 2030 Mountain View Ave., Dr. Gerlinde Tynan uses the SOZO device to treat lymphedema in breast cancer patients.

Lymphedema, or swelling caused by fluid building up in the lymphatic system, according to Tynan. 

Many breast cancer treatments, whether surgery or radiation, disrupt the lymph nodes. A side-effect of disrupting the lymph nodes is the fluids — which remove fluid through the lymphatic system — build up in the limbs causing swelling. In addition to swelling, the build-up of fluid increases the patient’s risk of infection, Tynan said. 

“Lymphedema is a feared complication of cancer treatment and one that negatively impacts survivorship. The incidence of breast cancer–related lymphedema ranges from 6% to 70%, but lymphedema may be a common and under-reported morbidity. No standard guidelines for its diagnosis and assessment exist,” according to Cancer Network.

It is true that until the development of the SOZO device, lymphedema was not easily diagnosed or assessed until visible swelling occurred. 

The SOZO device measures and assesses fluid buildup to help detect early signs of lymphedema, according to the ImpediMed website — the makers of the machine. 

The machine measures a patient’s L-Dex score — the amount of fluid in an area of the body compared to other areas — by sending a  “low-level electrical signal through the body,” according to the website. 

The SOZO resembles a scale. Patients stand on metal plates while a very low-level current is sent through the body, “ten times less powerful than a AA battery,” Tynan said. 

Through the current the machine “compares, for example, your right arm, which you have had lymph nodes removed, to the left arm. It can determine if there is more fluid built up in the affected arm than the other arm,” she said. 

The machine detects fluid that would build up in a body before a physician or a physical therapist could detect it. “It catches it in a stage that is readily reversible,” Tynan said. “It prevents lymphedema from occurring.”

Lymphedema is typically treated by using compression clothing for an average of four weeks to push the fluid back into the lymphatic system. When caught early, this treatment is usually enough, Tynan said. However, for patients who suffer from chronic lymphedema — when the condition is no longer reversible — “have to wear their sleeve (compression clothing) all the time … some patients have to wear a pump device — the sleeve manually pumps the fluid — it becomes a life-long thing you have to deal with,” Tynan said. Avoiding getting there is really the main goal,” in treatment.

Tynan has been a breast surgeon since 2009. She was called to the field because she liked being able to help patients who were experiencing a medical event that was of their making, she said.  

 “I was called to this field when I doing general surgery … things that may sometimes be attributed to lifestyle choices. Breast cancer is not caused by something we do … Breast cancer strikes people despite all of their best intentions,” Tynan said.

Because anyone can get breast cancer and it happens no matter how healthy a life the patient has lived, Tynan strives to make the treatment a small part of the patient’s life. 

“It's a period of time, you have your breast cancer, you’re treated, but it is not something that you should be reminded of every day,” she said. 

“All of those small things that help keep people get back to a normal life where they’re not always thinking ‘gosh I’m a cancer survivor,’ it just makes for an overall better quality of life,” Tynan said. “So not having this swollen arm, where you have to wear this hot, uncomfortable glove or sleeve all the time is part of that approach to making breast cancer a period in your life, not your whole life.” 

The best way to track whether lymphedema is to take a pre-surgery measurement and then every three months through the first three years. “Most lymphedema is going to occur within the first three years,” Tynan said.

The process is simple enough that patients do not need a doctor’s visit, just a quick stop in to get the measurement, Tynan said. 

“The key thing is that it is a prevention, not a treatment,” Tynan emphasized. 

“I would encourage women to get their mammogram screenings. One of the key things in breast cancer is catching it early. Breast cancers that are caught at an early stage are curable versus those that are caught at a later stage,” Tynan said.