Korrelationen mellan kvinnors fysiska aktivitetsnivå och svullnad som symtom på lymfödem, en tvärsnittsstudie

Sammanfattning: Purpose: The aim was to investigate whether the degree of self-rated physical activity level correlates with self-rated swelling as a symptom of lymphedema in women treated for breast cancer. Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer in women and subsequent lymphedema related to radiotherapy and surgery of tumors is one of the most common complications after treatment. Regular physical activity has shown different effects for these patients during and after treatment, as it can affect later side effects. Method: A quantitative cross-sectional study. The participants were women with a diagnosis of breast cancer who had undergone radiotherapy and surgery, who were 18 years or older, could communicate in writing in Swedish and who had provided data for the two current study questions about physical activity level and swelling degree. Their self-assessed physical activity level and lymphedema level were estimated using a questionnaire answered by patients at four different Swedish oncology clinics. The data that was used was collected from a previously conducted study where two questions from that questionnaire was analyzed.  Results: The main finding showed that there was little or no correlation between the women's physical activity level and swelling as a symptom of lymphedema. Conclusion: About a quarter of the participants had some form of swelling. After analysis, it resulted in a small positive correlation indicating that the physical activity has little or no relationship with the women´s degree of swelling. The relationship between physical activity and swelling as a symptom of lymphedema needs further research.