Effectiveness of Myofascial Release Versus Manual Lymphatic Drainage After Breast Cancer Surgery

Objective. To compare the effectiveness of myofascial therapy against manual lymphatic drainage in the reduction of sequelae secondary to conservative surgery and radiotherapy in women who survived breast cancer. Design. Randomized clinical trial. Site. Faculty of Physiotherapy of the University of Valencia. Participants. Twenty-four patients were included in the study. Interventions. 13 patients were randomly assigned to treatment with myofascial therapy and 11 to receive manual lymphatic drainage. Main measurements. Pain measured using the Visual Analogue Scale, shoulder joint range, shoulder functionality using the DASH questionnaire, quality of life assessed using the FACT-B questionnaire, and the depressed status of the patients using the PHQ-9 . All of this was assessed before and after treatment, and one month later as follow-up.