Personalized Treatment For Breast Cancer
Cancer Rehab
Cancer rehabilitation treats the symptoms caused by cancer or its treatment. It helps people maintain or improve their physical and emotional well-being. Using a team approach, our cancer rehab doctors provide lifestyle strategies and other recommendations to help improve your physical mobility, strength and quality of life during and after cancer treatment.
We help patients manage common issues like lymphedema, neuropathy and musculoskeletal issues caused by cancer or its treatment. We also can refer patients to UH Pain Management Services for therapy with Scrambler Technology, an FDA-approved device that uses small electrical currents transmitted through the skin to treat a type of nerve damage called chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) that can affect breast cancer patients.
Treating Lymphedema
The lymphatic system drains fluids from the body’s tissues. Lymphedema is swelling that occurs when the lymphatic system is not functioning correctly. The swelling often affects the arms and legs, but may also occur in other areas of the body. One of the most common causes of lymphedema is the surgical removal of lymph nodes to treat breast cancer. The condition can also be caused by radiation therapy.
Lymphedema is a long-term condition, but many treatments can help reduce swelling and infection risk. The earlier the condition is diagnosed, the simpler and more effective the treatment is. After lymph node surgery, if you notice any swelling in your hands, arms, chest or breasts, contact your oncologist or specialist nurse. In advanced cases, specialized lymphatic procedures performed by microvascular plastic surgeons can reconstruct the lymphatic system to improve lymphedema symptoms.
University Hospitals cancer rehab specialist Yevgeniya Dvorkin Wininger, MD, treats breast cancer patients with lymphedema. Lymphedema patients may also be referred to University Hospitals plastic surgeon Nidal AL Deek, MD, who performs advanced microvascular lymphedema surgical procedures, including lymphovenous bypass and lymph node transfer.
Supportive Integrative Oncology Services
University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center collaborates with University Hospitals Connor Whole Health to offer integrative oncology – an evidence-based approach to cancer care that uses complementary therapies, lifestyle changes and stress management techniques to help manage the side effects of cancer and its treatment. Integrative oncology therapies we offer our patients include:
- Acupuncture
- Massage
- Meditation
- Music therapy
- Reiki
- Yoga
Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Tumor Board
Once a patient has a breast cancer diagnosis, their case is presented at a multidisciplinary breast cancer tumor board meeting, where it’s reviewed by all members of the team, including:
- Surgical oncologists
- Medical oncologists
- Radiation oncologists
- Plastic surgeons
- Radiologists
- Pathologists
- Medical geneticists
- Genetic counselors
- Nurse navigators
- Nurse practitioners
- Social workers
The care team may recommend genomic testing of the tumor in certain cases. This type of testing looks at the cancer’s unique genetic makeup and can help guide more personalized treatment decisions. By understanding how the cancer behaves at a molecular level, providers can recommend therapies that are more specifically targeted to treat that individual cancer.
Multidisciplinary Breast Cancer Clinics
University Hospitals offers multidisciplinary breast cancer clinics at UH Ahuja Medical Center in Beachwood, UH Breen Women’s Health Pavilion in Cleveland and UH Avon Health Center in Avon. At our clinics, newly diagnosed breast cancer patients meet with their surgical, medical and radiation oncologist to discuss their treatment plans together.
Fertility Preservation Options
At University Hospitals Fertility Center, we offer comprehensive fertility preservation options for patients with breast cancer. Our program also includes the latest clinical trials, giving eligible patients access to innovative procedures that may not be available at other fertility centers.
Find a Doctor
Our breast cancer specialists offer the very latest advances in breast cancer care.