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One in five breast cancer survivors find their journey doesn’t end with treatment. Breast cancer-related lymphoedema—a chronic, incurable swelling condition—can develop within the first two years after treatment, and can significantly impact quality of life.
But what if this debilitating condition could be prevented through simple, accessible interventions?
This is the driving question for Dr Melanie Plinsinga, a Cancer Council Queensland Next Generation Cancer Research Fellowship recipient investigating whether exercise and compression therapy could offer a preventative solution.
Understanding the research
Breast cancer-related lymphoedema occurs when cancer treatment damages the lymphatic system, which is the body’s network responsible for draining fluid and fighting infection. The damage disrupts the anatomy and function of lymphatic vessels, leading to chronic swelling, discomfort, and reduced mobility. Symptoms patients must manage for the rest of their lives.
“It’s an incurable condition that happens in one in five people in the first two years after treatment,” explains Dr Plinsinga. “What I’m looking at is really trying to find preventative strategies that are accessible and equitable to access for everyone.”
The emphasis on accessibility is crucial. Many cancer-related interventions require expensive equipment, specialised facilities, or proximity to major treatment centres; all barriers that can prevent regional and remote Queenslanders from receiving optimal care.
Dr Plinsinga’s research team recently published a systematic review that revealed a game-changing insight: exercise therapy could actually prevent breast cancer-related lymphoedema from developing in the first place.
What this research means for Queenslanders
In Queensland, approximately 3,800 women are diagnosed with breast cancer each year. With one in five developing lymphoedema within two years of treatment, Dr Plinsinga’s research could prevent thousands of women from facing this chronic condition.
Building on the systematic review, Dr Plinsinga’s current research project is comparing exercise therapy and compression therapy against usual best care for breast cancer-related lymphoedema prevention. By rigorously testing these interventions, the study aims to establish evidence-based guidelines that clinicians can confidently recommend to patients completing breast cancer treatment.
Exercise-based interventions can be implemented in community settings, don’t require expensive technology, and can be adapted to individual circumstances and capabilities. If these accessible interventions prove effective at preventing lymphoedema, Queensland breast cancer survivors could avoid a chronic condition that affects physical function, body image, and overall wellbeing.
The researcher’s journey
Dr Melanie Plinsinga’s grandmother had breast cancer and survived. That experience shaped her decision to focus on improving quality of life for breast cancer survivors.
“I think everyone knows someone in their family that has cancer or had to undergo treatment for breast cancer,” Dr Plinsinga says. “It really motivated me to try to improve the quality of life of breast cancer survivors.”
Working at Griffith University’s health group, Dr Plinsinga had been planning this lymphoedema prevention research for years, but securing funding as an early career researcher proved challenging. When she received the Cancer Council Queensland Next Generation Cancer Research Fellowship, the five-year funding commitment changed everything.
“I think the first thing that I thought was amazement. I just couldn’t believe it,” she reflects. “The opportunity to be able to actually do the research that I’d been wanting to do for so long—I’m very honoured to have received the award.”
The fellowship gives early career researchers the time and stability to pursue prevention-focused studies that might otherwise struggle to secure support.
The rewarding aspects of her role
Preventing someone from developing lymphoedema is the ultimate goal of Dr Plinsinga’s research.
“If I see that, of course, that’s amazing. To see that someone has carried on with their lives without having to experience all the effects that come with lymphoedema. I think that’s really the ultimate goal,” she says.
The systematic review her team published showed that exercise therapy could prevent breast cancer-related lymphoedema. “I think this really set the scene for my project,” Dr Plinsinga says. “At that stage I thought, okay, this might actually be an accessible prevention strategy for not just Queenslanders, but everyone around the world.”
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