The LYMPH Trial - Comparing Microsurgical With Conservative Treatment of Chronic Breast Cancer Associated Lymphedema: Study Protocol of a Pragmatic Randomized International Multicentre Superiority Trial
University Hospital, Basel, Switzerland
Summary
The aim of this study is to test whether lymphatic surgery provides better QoL (assessed with the Lymph-ICF-UL, (Lymphedema Functioning Disability and health questionnaire for upper limb lymphedema)) 15 months after randomization (and therefore about one year after surgery) compared to conservative treatment only for patients with chronic lymphedema (LE)
Description
To date, conservative complex physical decongestion therapy (CDT) is the gold standard for BCRL (breast cancer related lymphedema) and includes manual lymphatic drainage, local compression with bandages and garments, physical exercises and meticulous skin care. It is, however, too often ineffective to prevent stage progression in curing BCRL and purely symptomatic. Lymphovenous anastomosis (LVA) and vascularized lymph node transfer (VLNT) are two surgical techniques that, in contrast to CDT, are able to actually address the underlying causes and eventually restore the lymphatic drainage. LVA a…