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Re: Massage Therapy?From: Patti Tessler, FNP (anonymous@obgyn.net)Sat, 30 Oct 1999 16:18:44 -0500 (CDT)
At Mon, 4 Oct 1999, Patti Tessler, FNP wrote: > >At Mon, 4 Oct 1999, anonymous@obgyn.net wrote: >> >>At Sun, 3 Oct 1999, Patti Tessler, FNP wrote: >>> >>>At Sun, 3 Oct 1999, Ellen wrote: >>>> >>>>I just read somewhere that it is not advisable for cancer >>>>survivors/patients to have a massage. Is this true, and if so, why? >>> >>>The group that can be labeled "cancer survivors/patients" is so large >>>and diverse that I have a hard time understanding such a blanket >>>warning. If you would kindly provide a reference or quote, which would >>>allow us to consider the context of the recommendation, we might be able >>>to address your question more completely. Any recollection of where you >>>read this statement? >>> >>It was posted by an oncologic nurse on another website. I also heard >>the same thing from a massage therapist who said it could spread cancer >>through stimulation of the lymph nodes. Any truth to this? > >I'm going to look into it further -- it may take some time. I strongly >urge you to discuss the recommendation with the oncology nurse who >posted it in the first place. Does s/he have any references to support >this recommendation? Does it apply to all types of cancer? Again, such a >blanket recommendation does not make sense to me. But my interest is >piqued! I've collected a little more information on this topic, although little is available. Using a Medline search on "cancer" and "massage," I found only one study that looked at the potential effects of massage on the disease itself, and the study did not examine cancer patients per se, but extrapolated its findings from HIV to cancer patients. The reference is: Massage therapy is associated with enhancement of the immune system's cytotoxic capacity. Ironson G; Field T; Scafidi F; Hashimoto M; Kumar M; Kumar A; Price A; Goncalves A; Burman I; Tetenman C; Patarca R; Fletcher MA. Int J Neurosci, 84(1-4):205-17 1996 Feb. These researchers work through the Touch Research Institute, University of Miami School of Medicine, Fl, USA, which my sources tell me is a group working on research trials of massage therapy and its effects on diseases. Two of the most common uses of massage in cancer patients are for pain relief and for relief of lymphedema, a side effect that occurs after certain types of breast cancer surgery. The studies I found often referred to these uses, but did not address possible harm from massage. I spoke with two licensed massage therapists, one of whom is also a family nurse practitioner. Both were aware that there were reasons to limit the use of certain massage modalities in certain cancer patients, and both required cancer patients to get clearance from their oncologists prior to starting massage therapy. One noted that some massage modalities, such as Swedish massage, have more likelihood of stimulating the lymphatic circulation (and possibly spreading cancer cells) than other modalities, such as Reiki (which is hands-off) and Shiatsu; however, he required oncology clearance prior to starting any treatment. To sum up, the wisdom of the use of massage in cancer patients seems to depend on the individual's situation. The decision should be made in conjunction with the person's oncologist as well as a licensed massage therapist. There are cancer-related medical problems, such as lymphedema, for which massage is an important therapy. It appears that no blanket statement can be made about the safety or danger of massage in people with cancer. Hope that helped. Sorry for the delay -- that was a tough one!
-- Patti Tessler, BSN, MSN, RN, CS Family Nurse Practitioner
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