For years breast cancer survivors received recommendations from doctors to avoid lifting anything greater than five pounds following a successful breast cancer treatment. This recommendation limited daily activity in ways that most people never dream about - requiring survivors to avoid everything from carrying groceries to picking up their own children.

Thankfully, the latest research from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine indicates that breast cancer survivors who lift weights not only experience the health benefits of weight training, but they also reduce their chance of developing lymphedema, a painful side effect of breast cancer surgery. These findings support a slowly progressive regimen of weight training following treatment, something that can help survivors regain normalcy in their lives.

The Research

Researchers recruited 154 breast cancer survivors without lymphedema who had completed their breast cancer treatment within the previous five years. Half of the group was placed in the weight lifting treatment, while the other half functioned as a control group. Each woman in the weight lifting treatment group was given a one-year membership to a local fitness center and was provided with twice weekly weight training sessions led by a personal fitness instructor for the first 13 weeks. Women then exercised on their own for the remainder of the year and were monitored monthly for changes in symptoms. 

The Results

After the year-long study, women who participated in the progressive weight lifting program were 35 percent less likely to develop lymphedema than the control group. Women who had five or more lymph nodes removed during their cancer treatment saw even greater benefits, reducing their chance of developing lymphedema by 70 percent!

The Takeaway

If you know someone who has undergone breast cancer treatment and avoids weight training or heavy lifting because of recommendations from her doctor, share the good news with her! Help her purchase a few sessions from a certified personal trainer so that she can learn to lift weights correctly. Not only will she cut her risk for lymphedema, but she'll strengthen her bones, improve her body composition and enhance her quality of life.

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