Wall Street Journal Perpetuates Lymphedema Myths

In an astonishingly misinformed article appearing in the June 1, 2004 issue of the Wall Street Journal entitled "Cancer Patients at Risk for Malady", reporter Tara Parker-Pope puts lymphedema patients at high risk for quackery. She reports that "even minor overuse of a limb can trigger extreme swelling" in patients who have undergone cancer treatment such as radiation or surgery. Nothing could be further from the truth. Movement of the limb causes muscular action which is vital in minimizing fluid buildup. After surgery and radiation, the worst possible advice for a patient is to minimize use of the arm or affected extremity - what the patient needs is to use the extremity normally to recover maximum function and reduce the stiffness and weakness that typically accompany such treatment. The WSJ article continues "working too long at the computer can trigger the swelling" - again, FALSE. Proper treatment should rather focus on leading a normal life and using the extremity as normally as possible, even in exercise. Compression garments and various physical therapy treatments are the mainstays of treatment. Surgery is indicated in a select group of patients. As a physician who treats lymphedema, I am always looking for increased attention to be focused on lymphedema - but a journalistic misadventure like the WSJ article is worse than no publicity at all. It makes me wonder about the quality of research that goes into maintstream media stories.