There are more than 2.6 million breast cancer survivors in the United States. And a new study at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, published in the journal Cancer, finds that more than 60 percent of breast cancer survivors have experienced at least one treatment-related complication. These complications include skin reactions to radiation therapy, limb swelling from lymphedema, postsurgical complications, and chronic fatigue.
“Our work provides the first accounting of the true magnitude of the post-treatment problems suffered by breast cancer patients, and serves as a call to action for proper monitoring and rehabilitation services to care for them,” said Kathryn Schmitz, an associate professor of biostatistics and epidemiology at Penn. “We can no longer pretend that the side effects of breast cancer treatment end after patients finish active treatment. The scope of these complications is shocking.”