1 2157 108 THE EFFECTS OF UPPER LIMB EXERCISE THROUGH YOGA ON LIMB SWELLING IN CHINESE BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS - A PILOT STUDY. PURPOSE: BREAST CANCER IS THE MOST COMMON FEMALE CANCER. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON LYMPHEDEMA IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS. DESIGN: REPEATED MEASURES BEFORE AND AFTER THE INTERVENTION. WE ENROLLED 15 WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER WHO HAD NOT PREVIOUSLY WORN ELASTIC CLOTHING TO TREAT LYMPHEDEMA. METHODS: THE PROGRAM WAS LED BY A CERTIFIED TRAINER AND CONSISTED OF 60-MINUTE SESSIONS, THREE TIMES A WEEK FOR 12 WEEKS. THE VOLUMES OF THE AFFECTED AND NORMAL LIMBS WERE MEASURED. A SELF-ASSESSED EDEMA SCORE WAS ALSO RECORDED. FINDINGS: FIFTEEN PATIENTS COMPLETED THE PROGRAM, NONE OF WHOM SUFFERED FROM COMPLICATIONS RELATED TO EXERCISE. THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT EDEMA AFTER EXERCISE. NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES WERE NOTED IN SUBGROUP ANALYSIS BY AGE OR THE AFFECTED ARM. CONCLUSIONS: YOGA DOES NOT INDUCE LYMPHEDEMA. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: LYMPHEDEMA IS USUALLY TREATED WITH UNCOMFORTABLE ELASTIC CLOTHING, AND HIGH-RESISTANCE EXERCISE MAY INDUCE EDEMA. YOGA MAY BE SUITABLE FOR THESE PATIENTS. 2017 2 1047 38 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON ARM VOLUME AMONG WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHEDEMA: A PILOT STUDY. LYMPHEDEMA AFFECTS 3-58% OF SURVIVORS OF BREAST CANCER AND CAN RESULT IN UPPER EXTREMITY IMPAIRMENTS. EXERCISE CAN BE BENEFICIAL IN MANAGING LYMPHEDEMA. YOGA PRACTICE HAS BEEN MINIMALLY STUDIED FOR ITS EFFECTS ON BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHEDEMA (BCRL). THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON ARM VOLUME, QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL), SELF-REPORTED ARM FUNCTION, AND HAND GRIP STRENGTH IN WOMEN WITH BCRL. SIX WOMEN WITH BCRL PARTICIPATED IN MODIFIED HATHA YOGA 3X/WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS. COMPRESSION SLEEVES WERE WORN DURING YOGA SESSIONS. ARM VOLUME, QOL, SELF-REPORTED ARM FUNCTION, AND HAND GRIP STRENGTH WERE MEASURED AT BASELINE, HALF-WAY, AND AT THE CONCLUSION OF YOGA PRACTICE. ARM VOLUME SIGNIFICANTLY DECREASED FROM BASELINE (2423.3 ML +/- 597.2) TO FINAL MEASURES (2370.8 ML +/- 577.2) (P = .02). NO SIGNIFICANT CHANGES IN QOL (P = .12), SELF-REPORTED ARM FUNCTION (P = .34), OR HAND GRIP STRENGTH (P = .26) WERE FOUND. YOGA MAY BE BENEFICIAL IN THE MANAGEMENT OF LYMPHEDEMA. 2014 3 2766 25 YOGA PROTOCOL FOR TREATMENT OF BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA. INTRODUCTION: VAQAS AND RYAN (2003) ADVOCATED YOGA AND BREATHING EXERCISES FOR LYMPHEDEMA. NARAHARI ET AL. (2007) DEVELOPED AN INTEGRATIVE MEDICINE PROTOCOL FOR LOWER-LIMB LYMPHEDEMA USING YOGA. STUDIES HAVE HYPOTHESIZED THAT YOGA PLAYS A SIMILAR ROLE AS THAT OF CENTRAL MANUAL LYMPH DRAINAGE OF FOLDI'S TECHNIQUE. THIS STUDY EXPLAINS HOW WE HAVE USED YOGA AND BREATHING AS A SELF-CARE INTERVENTION FOR BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA (BCRL). METHODS: THE STUDY OUTCOME WAS TO CREATE A YOGA PROTOCOL FOR BCRL. SELECTION OF YOGA WAS BASED ON THE ACTIONS OF MUSCLES ON JOINTS, ANATOMICAL AREAS ASSOCIATED WITH DIFFERENT GROUPS OF LYMPH NODES, STRETCHING OF SKIN, AND METHOD OF BREATHING IN EACH YOGA. THE PROTOCOL WAS PILOTED IN EIGHT BCRL PATIENTS, OBSERVED ITS DIFFICULTIES BY INTERACTING WITH PATIENTS. A LITERATURE SEARCH WAS CONDUCTED IN PUBMED AND COCHRANE LIBRARY TO IDENTIFY THE YOGA PROTOCOLS FOR BCRL. RESULTS: TWENTY YOGA AND 5 BREATHING EXERCISES WERE ADOPTED. THEY HAVE SLOW, METHODICAL JOINT MOVEMENTS WHICH HELPED PATIENTS TO TOLERATE PAIN. BREATHING WAS LONG AND DIAPHRAGMATIC. FLEXION OF JOINTS WAS COORDINATED WITH EXHALATION AND EXTENSION WITH INHALATION. ALTERNATE YOGA WAS INTRODUCED TO FACILITATE PATIENTS TO PERFORM COMPLEX MOVEMENTS. YOGA'S JOINT MOVEMENTS, INITIAL POSITIONS, AND MODE OF BREATHING WERE COMPARED TO TWO OTHER PROTOCOLS. THE VOLUME REDUCED FROM 2.4 TO 1.2 L IN EIGHT PATIENTS AFTER CONTINUOUS PRACTICE OF YOGA AND COMPRESSION AT HOME FOR 3 MONTHS. THERE WAS IMPROVEMENT IN THE RANGE OF MOVEMENT AND INTENSITY OF PAIN. DISCUSSION: YOGA EXERCISES WERE SELECTED ON THE BASIS OF THEIR ROLE IN CHEST EXPANSION, MAXIMIZING RANGE OF MOVEMENTS: FLEXION OF LARGE MUSCLES, MAXIMUM STRETCH OF SKIN, AND THUS PART-BY-PART LYMPH DRAINAGE FROM CENTER AND PERIPHERY. THIS PROTOCOL ADDRESSED FUNCTIONAL, VOLUME, AND MOVEMENT ISSUES OF BCRL AND WAS FOUND TO BE SUPERIOR TO OTHER BCRL YOGA PROTOCOLS. HOWEVER, THIS PROTOCOL NEEDS TO BE TESTED IN CENTERS ROUTINELY MANAGING BCRL. 2016 4 1574 36 MANAGING LYMPHEDEMA, INCREASING RANGE OF MOTION, AND QUALITY OF LIFE THROUGH YOGA THERAPY AMONG BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. LYMPHEDEMA IS A COMMON COMPLICATION OF BREAST CANCER TREATMENT. YOGA IS A NONCONVENTIONAL AND NONINVASIVE INTERVENTION THAT IS REPORTED TO SHOW BENEFICIAL EFFECTS IN PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA (BCRL). THIS STUDY ATTEMPTED TO SYSTEMATICALLY REVIEW THE EFFECT OF YOGA THERAPY ON MANAGING LYMPHEDEMA, INCREASING THE RANGE OF MOTION (ROM), AND QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) AMONG BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS. THE REVIEW SEARCH INCLUDED STUDIES FROM ELECTRONIC BIBLIOGRAPHIC DATABASES, NAMELY MEDLINE (PUBMED), EMBASE, AND GOOGLE SCHOLAR TILL JUNE 2019. STUDIES WHICH ASSESSED THE OUTCOME VARIABLES SUCH AS QOL AND MANAGEMENT OF LYMPHEDEMA OR RELATED PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS AS EFFECT OF YOGA INTERVENTION WERE CONSIDERED FOR REVIEW. TWO AUTHORS INDIVIDUALLY REVIEWED, SELECTED ACCORDING TO COCHRANE GUIDELINES, AND EXTRACTED THE ARTICLES USING COVIDENCE SOFTWARE. SCREENING PROCESS OF THIS REVIEW RESULTED IN A TOTAL OF SEVEN STUDIES. THE DIFFERENT STYLES OF YOGA EMPLOYED IN THE STUDIES WERE IYENGAR YOGA (N = 2), SATYANANDA YOGA (N = 2), HATHA YOGA (N = 2), AND ASHTANGA YOGA (N = 1). THE LENGTH OF INTERVENTION AND POST INTERVENTION ANALYSIS RANGED FROM 8 WEEKS TO 12 MONTHS. FOUR STUDIES INCLUDED HOME PRACTICE SESSIONS. QOL, ROM, AND MUSCULOSKELETAL SYMPTOMS SHOWED IMPROVEMENT IN ALL THE STUDIES. YOGA COULD BE A SAFE AND FEASIBLE EXERCISE INTERVENTION FOR BCRL PATIENTS. EVIDENCE GENERATED FROM THESE STUDIES WAS OF MODERATE STRENGTH. FURTHER LONG-TERM CLINICAL TRIALS WITH LARGE SAMPLE SIZE ARE ESSENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT AND STANDARDIZATION OF YOGA INTERVENTION GUIDELINES FOR BCRL PATIENTS. 2021 5 790 38 EFFECT OF YOGA EXERCISE ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE AND UPPER EXTREMITY VOLUME AMONG WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHEDEMA: A PILOT STUDY. PURPOSE: THIS PILOT STUDY AIMED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF AN 8-WEEKS-YOGA INTERVENTION ON QUALITY OF LIFE AND UPPER EXTREMITY EDEMA VOLUME IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHEDEMA. METHODS: THIS WAS A CONTROLLED TRIAL WITH PRE-POST DESIGN. A TOTAL OF 40 WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHEDEMA WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED INTO AN INTERVENTION OR CONTROL GROUPS. THE INTERVENTION GROUP PARTICIPATED IN A YOGA EXERCISE CLASS FOR 8 WEEKS, IN A TWICE A WEEK INSTRUCTOR-LED PRACTICE AND ONCE A WEEK HOME PRACTICE. OUTCOMES WERE EORTC QLQ_C30 TO MEASURE QUALITY OF LIFE, AND WATER DISPLACEMENT VOLUME-METER TO MEASURE UPPER EXTREMITY EDEMA VOLUME. THE OUTCOMES WERE EVALUATED AT BASELINE, 4TH AND 8TH WEEK. DATA WERE ANALYZED USING SPSS. RESULTS: FOUR WEEKS AFTER THE INTERVENTION, A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS OBSERVED BETWEEN THE GROUPS WITH RESPECT TO ROLE FUNCTIONING OF QUALITY OF LIFE (P=0.03). EIGHT WEEKS AFTER THE INTERVENTION, A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS OBSERVED BETWEEN GROUPS CONCERNING PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL FUNCTIONING OF QUALITY OF LIFE (P<0.05). THE CHANGING TREND IN PHYSICAL, ROLE, EMOTIONAL, AND COGNITIVE FUNCTIONING HAD INCREASED, AND IN SOME SCALES SUCH AS FATIGUE, PAIN, INSOMNIA, AND FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES THE SCORES WERE REDUCED IN THE INTERVENTION GROUP. REGARDING EDEMA VOLUME, NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE WAS FOUND BETWEEN BOTH GROUPS ON THE 4TH AND 8TH WEEK AFTER THE INTERVENTION (P>0.05). CONCLUSION: AS YOGA EXERCISE MIGHT IMPROVE PHYSICAL, ROLE, AND EMOTIONAL FUNCTIONING OF QUALITY OF LIFE AS WELL AS REDUCE FATIGUE, PAIN, AND INSOMNIA, USING THIS INTERVENTION CAN BE SUGGESTED AMONGST WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHEDEMA. 2019 6 925 33 EFFECTIVENESS OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS IN BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW. OBJECTIVES: TO SYNTHESIZE RECENT EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE ON YOGA-BASED INTERVENTIONS FOR PATIENTS WITH BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA. METHODS: WE SEARCHED THE PUBMED/MEDLINE, COCHRANE CENTRAL REGISTER OF CONTROLLED TRIALS AND EMBASE DATABASES FOR STUDIES PUBLISHED BETWEEN OCTOBER 2007 AND SEPTEMBER 2018 IN ANY LANGUAGE. RISK OF BIAS AND METHODOLOGICAL QUALITY WERE EVALUATED USING THE PRISMA STATEMENT AND CHECKLIST AND THE COCHRANE COLLABORATION TOOL. RESULTS: THERE WAS SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN LYMPHEDEMA STATUS, RANGE OF SHOULDER MOTION AND SPINAL MOBILITY AFTER AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION, WHEREAS THERE WAS NO CONSISTENCY IN QUALITY OF LIFE FOLLOWING YOGA INTERVENTION. ADDITIONALLY, THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE IN LYMPHEDEMA STATUS, EXTRACELLULAR FLUID AND TISSUE RESISTANCE OUTCOMES IN THE AFFECTED ARM FOLLOWING A LONG-TERM YOGA PRACTICE. CONCLUSION: THE CURRENT FINDINGS COULD NOT BE CLEARLY DEMONSTRATED THAT YOGA PROGRAMME INTERVENTION AS AN ADDITION TO USUAL CARE IS SUPERIOR TO ALONG USUAL CARE, AND KEEP YOGA EXERCISE DOES NOT PROVIDE SIGNIFICANT ADDED BENEFITS. 2019 7 2565 33 YOGA FOR CORRECTION OF LYMPHEDEMA'S IMPAIRMENT OF GAIT AS AN ADJUNCT TO LYMPHATIC DRAINAGE: A PILOT OBSERVATIONAL STUDY. INTRODUCTION: YOGA USED AS A MAJOR COMPONENT OF INTEGRATIVE TREATMENT PROTOCOL IN 14 INDIAN VILLAGE CAMPS IMPROVED QUALITY-OF-LIFE IN 425 LYMPHATIC FILARIASIS PATIENTS. THEY EXPERIENCED BETTER MOBILITY AND REDUCED DISABILITY. THIS PAPER DOCUMENTS THE GAIT ABNORMALITIES OBSERVED IN LOWER LIMB LYMPHEDEMA PATIENTS AND THE LOCOMOTOR CHANGES FOLLOWING INTEGRATIVE TREATMENT. MATERIALS AND METHODS: YOGA POSTURES WERE PERFORMED AS EXPLAINED BY TRADITIONAL YOGA PRACTICE IN TWO SESSIONS: BEFORE AYURVEDIC OIL MASSAGE WITHOUT COMPRESSION BANDAGES AND AFTER THE MASSAGE WITH COMPRESSION BANDAGES. EACH YOGA POSTURE LASTED FOR 5 MIN AND THE WHOLE SESSION ENDED IN 45 MIN. THROUGHOUT EACH SESSION, WE ADVISED PATIENTS TO DO LONG, DIAPHRAGMATIC BREATHING, CONCENTRATING ON EACH BREATH. THE FLEXION OF JOINTS WAS COORDINATED WITH EXHALATION AND EXTENSION WITH INHALATION. WE EDUCATED THE PATIENTS TO DO LONGER EXPIRATION THAN INSPIRATION. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: A TOTAL OF 98 PATIENTS (133 LIMBS) ATTENDING THE 6(TH) MONTH FOLLOW-UP WERE EVALUATED. THE MOST COMMON GAIT ABNORMALITY WAS ANTALGIC GAIT. STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL ABNORMALITIES WERE OBSERVED IN HIP, KNEE AND ANKLE JOINTS. WE FOUND THAT YOGA AS AN ADJUNCT TO OTHER COMPONENTS IN INTEGRATIVE TREATMENT IMPROVED THE GAIT PROBLEMS. LONG STANDING LYMPHEDEMA CAUSED ALTERED GAIT AND JOINT DEFORMITIES. THIS WAS MOSTLY DUE TO INACTIVITY CAUSING MUSCLE WEAKNESS AND EDEMA WITHIN AND AROUND THE MUSCLES. BOTH LARGE AND SMALL LIMBS HAVE SHOWN SIGNIFICANT VOLUME REDUCTION (P < 0.01) DURING FOLLOW-UP AFTER 6 MONTHS. CONCLUSION: THERE CAN BE A MIXED ETIOLOGY FOR GAIT RELATED PROBLEMS IN LYMPHEDEMA PATIENTS. FURTHER STUDIES ARE RECOMMENDED TO UNDERSTAND THE CAUSES OF DEFORMITIES IN LYMPHEDEMA PATIENTS AND AN EXACT ROLE OF YOGA. 2015 8 1405 39 IMPACT OF YOGA ON FUNCTIONAL OUTCOMES IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WITH AROMATASE INHIBITOR-ASSOCIATED ARTHRALGIAS. ARTHRALGIA AFFECTS POSTMENOPAUSAL BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS (BCSS) RECEIVING AROMATASE INHIBITORS (AIS). THIS STUDY AIMS TO ESTABLISH THE FEASIBILITY OF STUDYING THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON OBJECTIVE FUNCTIONAL OUTCOMES, PAIN, AND HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE (HR-QOL) FOR AI-ASSOCIATED ARTHRALGIA (AIAA). POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH STAGE I TO III BREAST CANCER WHO REPORTED AIAA WERE ENROLLED IN A SINGLE-ARM PILOT TRIAL. A YOGA PROGRAM WAS PROVIDED TWICE A WEEK FOR 8 WEEKS. THE FUNCTIONAL REACH (FR) AND SIT AND REACH (SR) WERE EVALUATED AS PRIMARY OUTCOMES. PAIN, AS MEASURED BY THE BRIEF PAIN INVENTORY (BPI), SELF-REPORTED PATIENT SPECIFIC FUNCTIONAL SCALE (PSFS), AND FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF CANCER THERAPY-BREAST (FACT-B) WERE SECONDARY OUTCOMES. PAIRED T TESTS WERE USED FOR ANALYSIS, AND 90% PROVIDED DATA FOR ASSESSMENT AT THE END OF THE INTERVENTION. PARTICIPANTS EXPERIENCED SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN BALANCE, AS MEASURED BY FR, AND FLEXIBILITY, AS MEASURED BY SR. THE PSFS IMPROVED FROM 4.55 TO 7.21, AND HR-QOL MEASURED BY FACT-B ALSO IMPROVED; BOTH P < .05. THE SCORE FOR THE PAIN SEVERITY SUBSCALE OF THE BPI REDUCED. NO ADVERSE EVENTS NOR DEVELOPMENT OR WORSENING OF LYMPHEDEMA WAS OBSERVED. IN ALL, 80% OF PARTICIPANTS ADHERED TO THE HOME PROGRAM. PRELIMINARY DATA SUGGEST THAT YOGA MAY REDUCE PAIN AND IMPROVE BALANCE AND FLEXIBILITY IN BCSS WITH AIAA. A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL IS NEEDED TO ESTABLISH THE DEFINITIVE EFFICACY OF YOGA FOR OBJECTIVE FUNCTIONAL IMPROVEMENT IN BCSS RELATED TO AIAA. 2012 9 2100 43 THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON ARM VOLUME, STRENGTH, AND RANGE OF MOTION IN WOMEN AT RISK FOR BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA. OBJECTIVES: TO ASSESS THE FEASIBILITY, SAFETY, AND INITIAL ESTIMATES OF EFFICACY OF A YOGA PROGRAM IN POSTOPERATIVE CARE FOR WOMEN AT HIGH RISK FOR BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHEDEMA (BCRL). DESIGN: SINGLE-GROUP PRETEST-POST-TEST DESIGN. SETTINGS/LOCATION: PATIENTS WERE RECRUITED FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO CAROL FRANC BUCK BREAST CARE CENTER. SUBJECTS: TWENTY-ONE WOMEN WERE ENROLLED IN THE STUDY. WOMEN WERE >18 YEARS OF AGE, HAD UNDERGONE SURGICAL TREATMENT FOR BREAST CANCER, AND WERE AT HIGH RISK FOR BCRL. INTERVENTION: THE WOMEN PARTICIPATED IN AN ASHTANGA YOGA INTERVENTION FOR 8 WEEKS. SESSIONS CONSISTED OF ONCE/WEEK INSTRUCTOR-LED PRACTICE AND ONCE/WEEK HOME PRACTICE. PARTICULAR ATTENTION WAS GIVEN TO POSES THAT EMPHASIZED UPPER BODY STRENGTH AND FLEXIBILITY, WHILE AVOIDING SIGNIFICANT TIME WITH THE UPPER EXTREMITY (UE) IN A DEPENDENT POSITION. OUTCOME MEASURES: UE VOLUME WAS ASSESSED THROUGH CIRCUMFERENTIAL FOREARM MEASUREMENT, WHICH WAS CONVERTED TO VOLUME USING THE FORMULA FOR A TRUNCATED CONE. RANGE OF MOTION (ROM) WAS ASSESSED FOR THE SHOULDERS, ELBOWS, AND WRISTS, USING A STANDARD GONIOMETER. UE STRENGTH WAS ASSESSED FOR SHOULDER ABDUCTION, ELBOW FLEXION, WRIST FLEXION, AND GRIP USING A DYNAMOMETER. RESULTS: TWENTY WOMEN COMPLETED THE YOGA INTERVENTION, WITH 17 RETURNING FOR FINAL ASSESSMENT. MEAN AGE WAS 52 (+/-9.1) YEARS AND BODY MASS INDEX WAS 24.8 (+/-5.1) KG/M(2). POSTINTERVENTION, MEAN VOLUME IN THE AT-RISK UE WAS SLIGHTLY REDUCED (P = 0.397). ROM FOR SHOULDER FLEXION (P < 0.01) AND EXTERNAL ROTATION (P < 0.05) SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED BILATERALLY. SHOULDER ABDUCTION ROM SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVED FOR THE UNAFFECTED LIMB (P = 0.001). FOLLOWING INTERVENTION, STRENGTH IMPROVED ON THE AFFECTED SIDE FOR SHOULDER ABDUCTION AND GRIP STRENGTH, AND BILATERALLY FOR ELBOW FLEXION (P < 0.05 FOR ALL). CONCLUSIONS: THESE PRELIMINARY FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT YOGA IS FEASIBLE AND SAFE FOR WOMEN WHO ARE AT RISK FOR BCRL AND MAY RESULT IN SMALL IMPROVEMENTS IN SHOULDER ROM AND UE STRENGTH. 2018 10 1295 30 GUIDELINES FOR TEACHING YOGA TO WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHOEDEMA: AN EVIDENCE-BASED APPROACH. BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHOEDEMA (BCRL) IS A CHRONIC CONDITION THAT REQUIRES LIFELONG MANAGEMENT TO PREVENT THE CONDITION WORSENING AND TO REDUCE THE THREAT OF INFECTION. WOMEN ARE AFFECTED IN ALL DOMAINS OF THEIR LIFE. AS A HOLISTIC PRACTICE, YOGA MAY BE OF BENEFIT BY REDUCING BOTH THE PHYSICAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL EFFECTS OF LYMPHOEDEMA. WOMEN WITH BCRL ARE ATTENDING YOGA CLASSES IN INCREASING NUMBERS, SO IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT YOGA BE BASED ON PRINCIPLES THAT ENSURE LYMPHOEDEMA IS CONTROLLED AND NOT EXACERBATED. TWO RANDOMISED CONTROLLED TRIALS WITH A YOGA INTERVENTION HAVE HAD POSITIVE RESULTS AFTER AN 8-WEEK INTERVENTION (N=28) AND 6-MONTHS AFTER A 4-WEEK INTERVENTION (N=18). THE FIRST STUDY HAD SEVERAL SIGNIFICANT RESULTS AND WOMEN REPORTED INCREASED BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL IMPROVEMENTS. BOTH STUDIES SHOWED TRENDS TO IMPROVED LYMPHOEDEMA STATUS. THE YOGA INTERVENTIONS COMPROMISED BREATHING, PHYSICAL POSTURES, MEDITATION AND RELAXATION PRACTICES BASED ON SATYANANDA YOGA(R), WITH MODIFICATIONS TO PROMOTE LYMPHATIC DRAINAGE AND FOLLOWING PRINCIPLES OF BEST CURRENT CARE FOR THOSE WITH BCRL. INDIVIDUAL NEEDS WERE CONSIDERED. THE YOGA PROTOCOL THAT WAS USED IN THE 8-WEEK TRIAL IS PRESENTED. OUR AIM IS TO PROVIDE PRINCIPLES FOR YOGA TEACHERS/THERAPISTS WORKING WITH THIS CLIENTELE THAT CAN BE ADAPTED TO OTHER YOGA STYLES. FURTHER, THESE PRINCIPLES MAY PROVIDE A BASIS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF YOGA PROGRAMS FOR PEOPLE WITH SECONDARY LYMPHOEDEMA IN OTHER AREAS OF THEIR BODY AS THE POPULATION REQUIRING CANCER TREATMENT CONTINUES TO INCREASE. WHILST THE STYLE OF YOGA PRESENTED HERE HAS HAD POSITIVE OUTCOMES, FURTHER APPLICATION AND RESEARCH IS NEEDED TO FULLY DEMONSTRATE ITS EFFECTIVENESS. 2017 11 399 23 BEYOND THE BODY: INSIGHTS FROM AN IYENGAR YOGA PROGRAM FOR WOMEN WITH DISABILITY AFTER BREAST CANCER. LYMPHEDEMA, PAIN, AND RANGE OF MOTION RESTRICTIONS AFTER BREAST CANCER REMAIN UNDEREXPLORED, AND FEW INTERVENTIONS HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED FOR THESE WOMEN. TOGETHER WITH A YOGA INSTRUCTOR, OUR INTERDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH TEAM DEVELOPED A YOGA PROGRAM FOR WOMEN WITH LYMPHEDEMA AFTER BREAST CANCER (N = 13). QUALITATIVE INTERVIEWS AND PARTICIPANTS' JOURNALS SHOW THAT THERE WERE A NUMBER OF BENEFITS TO THE YOGA PROGRAM. THEMES OUTLINING THESE ARE (1) UNDERSTANDING ARM MORBIDITY; (2) BECOMING AWARE OF POSTURE; AND (3) COUNTERING FATIGUE. MORE SURPRISINGLY, PERHAPS, THE PARTICIPANTS ALSO DESCRIBED THE WAYS IN WHICH YOGA FURTHERED THEIR UNDERSTANDINGS OF LOSS ASSOCIATED WITH DISABILITY, THE FOURTH THEME, AND SHOWED THAT YOGA ENHANCED THEIR EXPERIENCES OF EMBODIMENT, THE FINAL THEME. FINALLY, WE ASSERT THAT OUR RESEARCH DEMONSTRATES THE POTENTIAL FOR QUALITATIVE RESEARCH CONNECTED TO THE EVALUATION OF INTERVENTIONS AND THAT IT DEMONSTRATES THE BLURRING OF TRADITIONAL BOUNDARIES BETWEEN INTERVENTIONS AND DATA COLLECTION. 2014 12 2716 43 YOGA MANAGEMENT OF BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHOEDEMA: A RANDOMISED CONTROLLED PILOT-TRIAL. BACKGROUND: SECONDARY ARM LYMPHOEDEMA CONTINUES TO AFFECT AT LEAST 20% OF WOMEN AFTER TREATMENT FOR BREAST CANCER REQUIRING LIFELONG PROFESSIONAL TREATMENT AND SELF-MANAGEMENT. THE HOLISTIC PRACTICE OF YOGA MAY OFFER BENEFITS AS AN ADJUNCT SELF-MANAGEMENT OPTION. THE AIM OF THIS SMALL PILOT TRIAL WAS TO GAIN PRELIMINARY DATA TO DETERMINE THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON WOMEN WITH STAGE ONE BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHOEDEMA (BCRL). THIS PAPER REPORTS THE RESULTS FOR THE PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOMES. METHODS: PARTICIPANTS WERE RANDOMISED, AFTER BASELINE TESTING, TO RECEIVE EITHER AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION (N = 15), CONSISTING OF A WEEKLY 90-MINUTE TEACHER-LED CLASS AND A 40-MINUTE DAILY SESSION DELIVERED BY DVD, OR TO A USUAL CARE WAIT-LISTED CONTROL GROUP (N = 13). PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURES WERE: ARM VOLUME OF LYMPHOEDEMA MEASURED BY CIRCUMFERENCE AND EXTRA-CELLULAR FLUID MEASURED BY BIOIMPEDANCE SPECTROSCOPY. SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES WERE: TISSUE INDURATION MEASURED BY TONOMETRY; LEVELS OF SENSATIONS, PAIN, FATIGUE, AND THEIR LIMITING EFFECTS ALL MEASURED BY A VISUAL ANALOGUE SCALE (VAS) AND QUALITY OF LIFE BASED ON THE LYMPHOEDEMA QUALITY OF LIFE TOOL (LYMQOL). MEASUREMENTS WERE CONDUCTED AT BASELINE, WEEK 8 (POST-INTERVENTION) AND WEEK 12 (FOUR WEEKS AFTER CESSATION OF THE INTERVENTION). RESULTS: AT WEEK 8, THE INTERVENTION GROUP HAD A GREATER DECREASE IN TISSUE INDURATION OF THE AFFECTED UPPER ARM COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP (P = 0.050), AS WELL AS A GREATER REDUCTION IN THE SYMPTOM SUB-SCALE FOR QOL (P = 0.038). THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE IN ARM VOLUME OF LYMPHOEDEMA OR EXTRA-CELLULAR FLUID BETWEEN GROUPS AT WEEK 8; HOWEVER, AT WEEK 12, ARM VOLUME INCREASED MORE FOR THE INTERVENTION GROUP THAN THE CONTROL GROUP (P = 0.032). CONCLUSIONS: AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION REDUCED TISSUE INDURATION OF THE AFFECTED UPPER ARM AND DECREASED THE QOL SUB-SCALE OF SYMPTOMS. ARM VOLUME OF LYMPHOEDEMA AND EXTRA-CELLULAR FLUID DID NOT INCREASE. THESE BENEFITS DID NOT LAST ON CESSATION OF THE INTERVENTION WHEN ARM VOLUME OF LYMPHOEDEMA INCREASED. FURTHER RESEARCH TRIALS WITH A LONGER DURATION, HIGHER LEVELS OF LYMPHOEDEMA AND LARGER NUMBERS ARE WARRANTED BEFORE DEFINITIVE CONCLUSIONS CAN BE MADE. 2014 13 2185 41 THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON SHOULDER AND SPINAL ACTIONS FOR WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER-RELATED LYMPHOEDEMA OF THE ARM: A RANDOMISED CONTROLLED PILOT STUDY. BACKGROUND: WE AIMED TO EVALUATE THE EFFECT OF AN 8-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION ON THE SHOULDER AND SPINAL ACTIONS OF WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER-RELATED ARM LYMPHOEDEMA. METHOD: A RANDOMISED CONTROLLED PILOT TRIAL. THE INTERVENTION GROUP (N = 12) COMPLETED EIGHT WEEKS OF DAILY YOGA SESSIONS WHILE THE CONTROL GROUP (N = 11) CONTINUED WITH BEST CURRENT CARE INCLUDING INFORMATION ON COMPRESSION SLEEVES, SKIN CARE, RISKS OF TEMPERATURE VARIATIONS AND RECOMMENDED SAFE USE OF AFFECTED ARM. LUMBO-PELVIC POSTURE, RANGE OF MOTION (ROM) IN THE SHOULDER AND SPINE, AND STRENGTH IN SHOULDER AND PECTORAL MAJOR AND MINOR, AND SERRATUS ANTERIOR WERE TAKEN AT BASELINE, WEEK 8 AND AFTER A 4-WEEK FOLLOW-UP. OUTCOME ASSESSORS WERE BLINDED TO ALLOCATION. RESULTS: AT WEEK EIGHT THE INTERVENTION GROUP HAD AN IMPROVEMENT IN LUMBO-PELVIC POSTURE, AS INDICATED BY A REDUCTION IN PELVIC OBLIQUITY COMPARED TO THE CONTROL GROUP (MEAN DIFFERENCE = -8.39 DEGREES , 95 % CI: -15.64 TO -1.13 DEGREES , P = 0.023). A SECONDARY FINDING WAS THAT STRENGTH IN SHOULDER ABDUCTION SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED FOLLOWING THE YOGA INTERVENTION IN BOTH THE AFFECTED (9.5 KG; CI: 0.34 TO 18.66, P = 0.042) AND NON-AFFECTED ARM (11.58 KG; CI: 0.25 TO 22.91; P = 0.045). THERE WERE NO SIGNIFICANT BETWEEN GROUP CHANGES IN ANY ROM MEASURES AS A RESULT OF THE YOGA INTERVENTION. CONCLUSION: THIS PILOT STUDY DEMONSTRATES THAT PARTICIPATION IN YOGA MAY PROVIDE BENEFITS FOR POSTURE AND STRENGTH IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER RELATED LYMPHOEDEMA. THE IMPROVEMENTS MAY BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE FOCUS OF YOGA ON OVERALL POSTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL MOVEMENT PATTERNS. FURTHER TRIALS WITH LONGER INTERVENTION THAT FOLLOW THIS METHODOLOGY ARE WARRANTED. TRIAL REGISTRATION: THE AUSTRALIAN NEW ZEALAND CLINICAL TRIALS REGISTRY ACTRN12611000202965 . 2016 14 1865 41 RANDOMIZED PILOT TRIAL OF YOGA VERSUS STRENGTHENING EXERCISES IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WITH CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE. PURPOSE: FATIGUE IS ONE OF THE MOST COMMON AND BOTHERSOME REFRACTORY SYMPTOMS EXPERIENCED BY CANCER SURVIVORS. MINDFUL EXERCISE INTERVENTIONS SUCH AS YOGA IMPROVE CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE; HOWEVER, STUDIES OF YOGA HAVE INCLUDED HETEROGENEOUS SURVIVORSHIP POPULATIONS, AND THE EFFECT OF YOGA ON FATIGUED SURVIVORS REMAINS UNCLEAR. METHODS: WE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED 34 EARLY-STAGE BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WITH CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE (>/=4 ON A LIKERT SCALE FROM 1-10) WITHIN 1 YEAR FROM DIAGNOSIS TO A 12-WEEK INTERVENTION OF HOME-BASED YOGA VERSUS STRENGTHENING EXERCISES, BOTH PRESENTED ON A DVD. THE PRIMARY ENDPOINTS WERE FEASIBILITY AND CHANGES IN FATIGUE, AS MEASURED BY THE MULTIDIMENSIONAL FATIGUE SYMPTOM INVENTORY-SHORT FORM (MFSI-SF). SECONDARY ENDPOINT WAS QUALITY OF LIFE, ASSESSED BY THE FUNCTIONAL ASSESSMENT OF CANCER THERAPIES-BREAST (FACT-B). RESULTS: WE INVITED 401 WOMEN TO PARTICIPATE IN THE STUDY; 78 RESPONDED, AND WE ENROLLED 34. BOTH GROUPS HAD SIGNIFICANT WITHIN-GROUP IMPROVEMENT IN MULTIPLE DOMAINS OF THE FATIGUE AND QUALITY OF LIFE SCORES FROM BASELINE TO POST-INTERVENTION, AND THESE BENEFITS WERE MAINTAINED AT 3 MONTHS POST-INTERVENTION. HOWEVER, THERE WAS NO SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GROUPS IN FATIGUE OR QUALITY OF LIFE AT ANY ASSESSMENT TIME. SIMILARLY, THERE WAS NO DIFFERENCE BETWEEN GROUPS IN ADHERENCE TO THE EXERCISE INTERVENTION. CONCLUSIONS: BOTH DVD-BASED YOGA AND STRENGTHENING EXERCISES DESIGNED FOR CANCER SURVIVORS MAY BE GOOD OPTIONS TO ADDRESS FATIGUE IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS. BOTH HAVE REASONABLE UPTAKE, ARE CONVENIENT AND REPRODUCIBLE, AND MAY BE HELPFUL IN DECREASING FATIGUE AND IMPROVING QUALITY OF LIFE IN THE FIRST YEAR POST-DIAGNOSIS IN BREAST CANCER PATIENTS WITH CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE. 2016 15 1876 34 REAL-WORLD EXPERIENCES WITH YOGA ON CANCER-RELATED SYMPTOMS IN WOMEN WITH BREAST CANCER. PURPOSE: INTEGRATIVE THERAPIES SUCH AS YOGA ARE POTENTIAL TREATMENTS FOR MANY PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS THAT OCCUR DURING AND/OR AFTER TREATMENT FOR CANCER. THE PURPOSE OF THE CURRENT STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE PATIENT-PERCEIVED BENEFIT OF YOGA FOR SYMPTOMS COMMONLY EXPERIENCED BY BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS. METHODS: 1,049 BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WHO HAD SELF-REPORTED USE OF YOGA ON A FOLLOW UP SURVEY, IN AN ONGOING PROSPECTIVE MAYO CLINIC BREAST DISEASE REGISTRY (MCBDR), RECEIVED AN ADDITIONAL MAILED YOGA-FOCUSED SURVEY ASKING ABOUT THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON A VARIETY OF SYMPTOMS. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PRE- AND POST- SCORES WERE ASSESSED USING WILCOXON SIGNED RANK TEST. RESULTS: 802/1,049 (76%) OF WOMEN WHO WERE APPROACHED TO PARTICIPATE, CONSENTED AND RETURNED THE SURVEY. 507/802 (63%) REPORTED USE OF YOGA DURING AND/OR AFTER THEIR CANCER DIAGNOSIS. THE VAST MAJORITY OF RESPONDENTS (89.4%) REPORTED SOME SYMPTOMATIC BENEFIT FROM YOGA. THE MOST COMMON SYMPTOMS THAT PROMPTED THE USE OF YOGA WERE BREAST/CHEST WALL PAIN, LYMPHEDEMA, AND ANXIETY. ONLY 9% OF PATIENTS REPORTED THAT THEY HAD BEEN REFERRED TO YOGA BY A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. WHILE THE GREATEST SYMPTOM IMPROVEMENT WAS REPORTED WITH BREAST/CHEST WALL PAIN AND ANXIETY, SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT WAS ALSO PERCEIVED IN JOINT PAIN, MUSCLE PAIN, FATIGUE, HEADACHE, QUALITY OF LIFE, HOT FLASHES, NAUSEA/VOMITING, DEPRESSION, INSOMNIA, LYMPHEDEMA, AND PERIPHERAL NEUROPATHY, (ALL P-VALUES <0.004). CONCLUSION: DATA SUPPORTING THE USE OF YOGA FOR SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT AFTER CANCER ARE LIMITED AND TYPICALLY FOCUS ON MENTAL HEALTH. IN THIS STUDY, USERS OF YOGA OFTEN REPORTED PHYSICAL BENEFITS AS WELL AS MENTAL HEALTH BENEFITS. FURTHER PROSPECTIVE STUDIES INVESTIGATING THE EFFICACY OF YOGA IN SURVIVORSHIP ARE WARRANTED. 2021 16 149 36 A QUALITATIVE EXPLORATION OF THE IMPACT OF YOGA ON BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WITH AROMATASE INHIBITOR-ASSOCIATED ARTHRALGIAS. RESEARCH QUESTION: ARTHRALGIA AFFECTS POSTMENOPAUSAL BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS (BCS) RECEIVING AROMATASE INHIBITORS (AI), WHICH MAY RESULT IN REDUCED FUNCTION AND LONG-TERM WELL-BEING. THIS IS AN EXPLORATORY, QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION OF BCS WHO PARTICIPATED IN A YOGA-BASED PROGRAM TO UNDERSTAND IMPACT ON JOINT PAIN AND VARIOUS ASPECTS OF QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) THROUGH A YOGA PROGRAM. THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK: SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY WAS USED AND PROVIDED THE FOUNDATION FOR DEVELOPING A YOGA INTERVENTION THROUGH SOURCES OF EFFICACY INFORMATION: (1) PERFORMANCE ACCOMPLISHMENT, (2) STRUCTURED EXPERIENCE, (3) VERBAL SUPPORT FROM INSTRUCTOR AND GROUP, AND (4) PHYSICAL FEEDBACK. METHODOLOGY: TEN POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH STAGE I-III BREAST CANCER AND AI ASSOCIATED ARTHRALGIA (AIAA) RECEIVED YOGA TWICE A WEEK FOR EIGHT WEEKS FOR 90 MINUTES AND WERE INSTRUCTED TO CONTINUE IN A HOME-BASED YOGA PROGRAM. WE USED SOCIAL COGNITIVE THEORY (SCT) TO STRUCTURE A YOGA INTERVENTION AS AN ONGOING PHYSICAL ACTIVITY TO MANAGE JOINT PAIN AND FUNCTION. PARTICIPANTS COMPLETED JOURNAL REFLECTIONS ON THEIR EXPERIENCE AND RECEIVED WEEKLY PHONE CALLS. ANALYSIS: DATA WAS COLLECTED AND ANALYZED USING QUALITATIVE METHODS. MEMBER CHECKS WERE COMPLETED AND EMERGENT THEMES WERE EXPLORED AND AGREED UPON BY THE RESEARCH TEAM TO ENSURE RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY OF DATA. SEVERAL EMERGENT THEMES WERE DISCOVERED: EMPOWERMENT: IMPORTANCE OF CAMARADERIE, COMMUNITY, AND SHARING; PAIN RELIEF; INCREASED PHYSICAL FITNESS (ENERGY, FLEXIBILITY, AND FUNCTION); RELIEVED STRESS/ANXIETY AND TRANSFERABILITY OF YOGA THROUGH BREATHING. THESE THEMES WERE IDENTIFIED THROUGH INSTRUCTOR OBSERVATION, PARTICIPANT OBSERVATION, AND WEEKLY PHONE CALL DOCUMENTATION. INTERPRETATION: PARTICIPANTS EXPERIENCED AN EIGHT-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION AS AN EFFECTIVE PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND SUPPORT GROUP THAT FOSTERED VARIOUS IMPROVEMENTS IN QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL) AND REDUCTION IN AIAA. PARTICIPANTS WERE HIGHLY MOTIVATED TO IMPROVE PHYSICAL FITNESS LEVELS AND REDUCE PAIN. THIS STUDY REVEALED BENEFITS FROM ALTERNATIVE FORMS OF EXERCISE SUCH AS YOGA TO PROVIDE A STRUCTURE, WHICH IS TRANSFERABLE IN OTHER SITUATIONS. INFORMATION, STRUCTURED PHYSICAL GUIDANCE IN YOGA POSTURES, SUPPORT, AND FEEDBACK ARE NECESSARY TO FOSTER PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR BCS EXPERIENCING PAIN. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: RESULTS OF THIS QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS INDICATE THAT INTERVENTIONS TO SUPPORT BCS WITH AIAA ARE WARRANTED. YOGA APPEARS TO POSITIVELY IMPACT THESE SIDE EFFECTS OF HORMONAL THERAPIES. ADDITIONAL RESEARCH WOULD AID IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF OTHER INTERVENTIONS. 2012 17 2623 25 YOGA FOR SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT IN ONCOLOGY: A REVIEW OF THE EVIDENCE BASE AND FUTURE DIRECTIONS FOR RESEARCH. BECAUSE YOGA IS INCREASINGLY RECOGNIZED AS A COMPLEMENTARY APPROACH TO CANCER SYMPTOM MANAGEMENT, PATIENTS/SURVIVORS AND PROVIDERS NEED TO UNDERSTAND ITS POTENTIAL BENEFITS AND LIMITATIONS BOTH DURING AND AFTER TREATMENT. THE AUTHORS REVIEWED RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIALS (RCTS) OF YOGA CONDUCTED AT THESE POINTS IN THE CANCER CONTINUUM (N = 29; N = 13 DURING TREATMENT, N = 12 POST-TREATMENT, AND N = 4 WITH MIXED SAMPLES). FINDINGS BOTH DURING AND AFTER TREATMENT DEMONSTRATED THE EFFICACY OF YOGA TO IMPROVE OVERALL QUALITY OF LIFE (QOL), WITH IMPROVEMENT IN SUBDOMAINS OF QOL VARYING ACROSS STUDIES. FATIGUE WAS THE MOST COMMONLY MEASURED OUTCOME, AND MOST RCTS CONDUCTED DURING OR AFTER CANCER TREATMENT REPORTED IMPROVEMENTS IN FATIGUE. RESULTS ALSO SUGGESTED THAT YOGA CAN IMPROVE STRESS/DISTRESS DURING TREATMENT AND POST-TREATMENT DISTURBANCES IN SLEEP AND COGNITION. SEVERAL RCTS PROVIDED EVIDENCE THAT YOGA MAY IMPROVE BIOMARKERS OF STRESS, INFLAMMATION, AND IMMUNE FUNCTION. OUTCOMES WITH LIMITED OR MIXED FINDINGS (EG, ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, PAIN, CANCER-SPECIFIC SYMPTOMS, SUCH AS LYMPHEDEMA) AND POSITIVE PSYCHOLOGICAL OUTCOMES (SUCH AS BENEFIT-FINDING AND LIFE SATISFACTION) WARRANT FURTHER STUDY. IMPORTANT FUTURE DIRECTIONS FOR YOGA RESEARCH IN ONCOLOGY INCLUDE: ENROLLING PARTICIPANTS WITH CANCER TYPES OTHER THAN BREAST, STANDARDIZING SELF-REPORT ASSESSMENTS, INCREASING THE USE OF ACTIVE CONTROL GROUPS AND OBJECTIVE MEASURES, AND ADDRESSING THE HETEROGENEITY OF YOGA INTERVENTIONS, WHICH VARY IN TYPE, KEY COMPONENTS (MOVEMENT, MEDITATION, BREATHING), DOSE, AND DELIVERY MODE. 2019 18 2605 34 YOGA FOR PERSISTENT FATIGUE IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS: RESULTS OF A PILOT STUDY. APPROXIMATELY ONE-THIRD OF BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS EXPERIENCES PERSISTENT FATIGUE FOR MONTHS OR YEARS AFTER SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT COMPLETION. THERE IS A LACK OF EVIDENCE-BASED TREATMENTS FOR CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE, PARTICULARLY AMONG CANCER SURVIVORS. THIS SINGLE-ARM PILOT STUDY EVALUATED THE FEASIBILITY AND PRELIMINARY EFFICACY OF A YOGA INTERVENTION FOR FATIGUED BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS BASED ON THE IYENGAR TRADITION. IYENGAR YOGA PRESCRIBES SPECIFIC POSES FOR INDIVIDUALS WITH SPECIFIC MEDICAL PROBLEMS AND CONDITIONS; THIS TRIAL EMPHASIZED POSTURES BELIEVED TO BE EFFECTIVE FOR REDUCING FATIGUE AMONG BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS, INCLUDING INVERSIONS AND BACKBENDS PERFORMED WITH THE SUPPORT OF PROPS. TWELVE WOMEN WERE ENROLLED IN THE TRIAL, AND 11 COMPLETED THE FULL 12-WEEK COURSE OF TREATMENT. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT IN FATIGUE SCORES FROM PRE- TO POST-INTERVENTION THAT WAS MAINTAINED AT THE 3-MONTH POST-INTERVENTION FOLLOWUP. SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENTS WERE ALSO OBSERVED IN MEASURES OF PHYSICAL FUNCTION, DEPRESSED MOOD, AND QUALITY OF LIFE. THESE RESULTS SUPPORT THE ACCEPTABILITY OF THIS INTERVENTION AND SUGGEST THAT IT MAY HAVE BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON PERSISTENT POST-TREATMENT FATIGUE. HOWEVER, RESULTS REQUIRE REPLICATION IN A LARGER RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. 2011 19 2826 28 YOGA VERSUS MASSAGE IN THE TREATMENT OF AROMATASE INHIBITOR-ASSOCIATED KNEE JOINT PAIN IN BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. AROMATASE INHIBITORS (AIS) ARE STANDARD ADJUVANT THERAPY FOR POSTMENOPAUSAL WOMEN WITH OESTROGEN RECEPTOR-POSITIVE, EARLY-STAGE, AND METASTATIC BREAST CANCER. ALTHOUGH EFFECTIVE, THE RISK OF FALLS DUE TO AI-ASSOCIATED KNEE JOINT PAIN SIGNIFICANTLY INCREASED. THE AIM OF THIS STUDY WAS TO EVALUATE THE THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS OF YOGA AND MASSAGE ON AI-ASSOCIATED KNEE JOINT PAIN. BREAST CANCER SURVIVORS WERE RANDOMLY ASSIGNED TO A 6-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION-2-WEEK REST-6-WEEK MASSAGE EXPOSURE (YOGA FIRST, N = 30) OR A 6-WEEK MASSAGE INTERVENTION-2-WEEK REST-6-WEEK YOGA EXPOSURE (MASSAGE FIRST, N = 30). EVALUATIONS OF THE TREATMENT EFFICACY WERE MADE AT BASELINE, POST-INTERVENTION, AND POST-EXPOSURE USING THE WESTERN ONTARIO AND MCMASTER UNIVERSITIES OSTEOARTHRITIS INDEX (WOMAC) SCALE, PLASMA CYTOKINE LEVELS, AND CHANGES IN MERIDIAN ENERGY. THE RESULTS SHOWED THAT YOGA, SUPERIOR TO MASSAGE INTERVENTION, SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED AI-ASSOCIATED KNEE JOINT PAIN, AS DEMONSTRATED BY THE WOMAC PAIN SCORE. THE YOGA INTERVENTION IMPROVEMENTS WERE ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH CHANGES IN PLASMA CYTOKINE LEVELS AND MERIDIAN ENERGY CHANGES. IN CONCLUSION, THIS STUDY PROVIDES SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE THAT YOGA WAS MORE EFFECTIVE THAN MASSAGE FOR REDUCING AI-ASSOCIATED KNEE JOINT PAIN. MERIDIAN ENERGY CHANGES MAY PROVIDE ANOTHER SCIENTIFIC, OBJECTIVE, NON-INVASIVE WAY TO MONITOR THE THERAPEUTIC EFFECTS OF YOGA AND INVESTIGATE ANOTHER ALTERNATIVE, COMPLEMENTARY MEDICINE. 2021 20 1052 33 EFFECTS OF YOGA ON CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE AND GLOBAL SIDE-EFFECT BURDEN IN OLDER CANCER SURVIVORS. BACKGROUND: SIXTY PERCENT OF CANCER SURVIVORS ARE 65YEARS OF AGE OR OLDER. CANCER AND ITS TREATMENTS LEAD TO CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE AND MANY OTHER SIDE EFFECTS, IN TURN, CREATING SUBSTANTIAL GLOBAL SIDE-EFFECT BURDEN (TOTAL BURDEN FROM ALL SIDE EFFECTS) WHICH, ULTIMATELY, COMPROMISES FUNCTIONAL INDEPENDENCE AND QUALITY OF LIFE. VARIOUS MODES OF EXERCISE, SUCH AS YOGA, REDUCE CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE AND GLOBAL SIDE-EFFECT BURDEN IN YOUNGER CANCER SURVIVORS, BUT NO STUDIES HAVE SPECIFICALLY EXAMINED THE EFFECTS OF YOGA ON OLDER CANCER SURVIVORS. OBJECTIVES: THE PURPOSE OF THIS STUDY WAS TO ASSESS THE EFFECTS OF A 4-WEEK YOGA INTERVENTION (YOGA FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: YOCAS(C)(R)) ON OVERALL CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE, AND DUE TO ITS MULTIDIMENSIONAL NATURE, THE SUBDOMAINS OF CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE (GENERAL, PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL, AND MENTAL) AND GLOBAL SIDE-EFFECT BURDEN IN OLDER CANCER SURVIVORS. MATERIALS AND METHODS: WE CONDUCTED A SECONDARY ANALYSIS ON DATA FROM A MULTICENTER PHASE III RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED CLINICAL TRIAL WITH 2 ARMS (STANDARD CARE AND STANDARD CARE PLUS A 4-WEEK YOCAS(C)(R) INTERVENTION). THE SAMPLE FOR THIS SECONDARY ANALYSIS WAS 97 OLDER CANCER SURVIVORS (>/=60YEARS OF AGE), BETWEEN 2MONTHS AND 2YEARS POST-TREATMENT, WHO PARTICIPATED IN THE ORIGINAL TRIAL. RESULTS: PARTICIPANTS IN THE YOCAS(C)(R) INTERVENTION ARM REPORTED SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE, PHYSICAL FATIGUE, MENTAL FATIGUE, AND GLOBAL SIDE-EFFECT BURDEN THAN PARTICIPANTS IN THE STANDARD CARE ARM FOLLOWING THE 4-WEEK INTERVENTION PERIOD (P<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: YOCAS(C)(R) IS AN EFFECTIVE STANDARDIZED YOGA INTERVENTION FOR REDUCING CANCER-RELATED FATIGUE, PHYSICAL FATIGUE, MENTAL FATIGUE, AND GLOBAL SIDE-EFFECT BURDEN AMONG OLDER CANCER SURVIVORS. 2015