Cancer Rehabilitation Support

Axillary Web Syndrome, more commonly known as cording, can occur following breast surgery and lymph node removal. It appears as tight, cord-like structures that can develop under the arm and sometimes extend into the chest wall, arm, forearm, or even the hand. Cording can make simple movements such as reaching overhead, dressing, driving, or exercising uncomfortable and restrictive. It often feels tight, painful, or as though something is “pulling” beneath the skin.

Physiotherapy can help reduce symptoms and restore movement through a combination of education, hands-on treatment, stretching, and targeted exercises. Early intervention often leads to better outcomes and may help reduce the risk of ongoing movement restrictions.

Capsular contracture is a potential complication following breast reconstruction with implants. As part of the body’s natural healing process, a layer of scar tissue forms around the implant. In some cases, this scar tissue can tighten and contract, causing the breast to feel firm, uncomfortable, distorted in shape, or painful.

Symptoms can range from mild tightness through to significant discomfort and restriction of movement around the chest and shoulder.

While treatment options vary depending on severity, physiotherapy can assist with managing surrounding tissue tightness, improving chest wall mobility, optimising posture, and helping maintain shoulder movement and function.

Some breast cancer treatments, particularly hormonal therapies such as aromatase inhibitors, can affect the health of tendons and connective tissues. This may increase the risk of developing tendon-related pain and conditions known as tendinopathies.

Common areas affected include the shoulders, elbows, wrists, hips, knees, and feet. Symptoms may include pain, stiffness, reduced strength, or discomfort during everyday activities and exercise.

The good news is that movement remains one of the most effective treatments. Through a personalised rehabilitation program, treatment can help manage symptoms, improve tendon capacity, restore strength, and support your return to activities while minimising the risk of further irritation.

Cancer-related fatigue is one of the most common and challenging side effects of cancer and its treatment, affecting the majority of people at some point during their cancer experience. Unlike everyday tiredness, cancer-related fatigue is often overwhelming, can occur without warning, and isn’t always relieved by rest.

For some people, fatigue improves as treatment finishes. For others, it can persist for months or even years, impacting work, family life, social activities, exercise, and the simple day-to-day tasks that were once taken for granted.

Many people understandably believe that rest is the best way to manage fatigue. While rest is important, too much inactivity can actually contribute to further loss of strength, fitness, and function, making fatigue feel even more overwhelming over time.

Research consistently shows that appropriately prescribed physical activity is one of the most effective ways to manage cancer-related fatigue. Not only is exercise safe during most cancer treatments, but it can help improve energy levels, maintain physical function, and support overall wellbeing throughout recovery.

The key is not pushing harder, it’s learning how to use your energy wisely. Rehabilitation involves exploring strategies to help you manage your “fatigue battery”, balancing activity and recovery in a way that feels achievable and sustainable. By starting where you are and progressing gradually, this approach can help build confidence, improve energy levels, and support a return to doing more of the things that matter to you.

How rehabilitation can help:

• Understand and manage fatigue more effectively
• Develop strategies to balance activity and rest
• Rebuild strength and fitness safely
• Improve confidence in the body’s capabilities
• Return to meaningful activities and daily routines
• Reduce the impact fatigue has on quality of life

Because fatigue may be common, it doesn’t mean you simply have to put up with it. With the right support and strategies, it can often be significantly improved.

Joint pain, also known as arthralgia, is a common side effect of some cancer treatments, particularly hormonal therapies. It can affect the hands, wrists, shoulders, hips, knees, and feet, making movement uncomfortable and impacting daily activities.

Many people worry that pain means they should stop moving, but appropriate movement is often one of the most effective ways to manage symptoms. Rehabilitation can help reduce pain, improve joint mobility, maintain strength, and support staying active while managing treatment-related side effects.

Radiotherapy is an important part of cancer treatment, but it can cause changes to the skin, muscles, and connective tissues both during treatment and in the months or years that follow. Many people experience tightness across the chest, shoulder, neck, armpit, or treated area, which can affect movement, posture, comfort, and confidence.

Through a combination of education, hands-on therapy, scar management, stretching, and targeted exercise, rehabilitation can help improve mobility, reduce discomfort, and restore movement, allowing you to return to daily activities with greater ease.

Lymphoedema is a long-term condition that can occur when the lymphatic system is damaged or disrupted, often as a result of cancer treatment such as surgery or radiotherapy, or due to the cancer itself. This leads to a build-up of lymphatic fluid in the affected area, most commonly the arm, leg, breast, or trunk, causing swelling, heaviness, tightness, and sometimes discomfort or reduced mobility. In cancer physiotherapy, management focuses on reducing and controlling swelling, improving function, and preventing progression through a combination of education, exercise, skin care, compression therapy guidance, and manual lymphatic techniques where appropriate. Early identification and ongoing support are key to maintaining quality of life and helping people stay active and confident in daily movement.

Feeling short of breath can be a distressing and frustrating side effect of cancer and its treatment. Breathlessness may occur during physical activity, everyday tasks, or sometimes even at rest, often leading people to avoid movement for fear of making symptoms worse.

Through education, breathing techniques, pacing strategies, and appropriately prescribed exercise, rehabilitation can help improve confidence, reduce anxiety associated with breathlessness, and support returning to activities that are important to you.

Breathing is something we rarely think about until it becomes difficult. Cancer treatment, surgery, pain, fatigue, and anxiety can all influence the way we breathe, sometimes creating patterns that contribute to discomfort, breathlessness, and reduced activity levels. Learning simple breathing techniques can help improve breathing efficiency, support relaxation, assist with symptom management, and provide practical strategies for managing physical activity and everyday tasks with greater confidence.

Some cancer treatments can affect bone health, increasing the risk of osteoporosis and fractures. This can understandably create uncertainty around movement and exercise, with many people becoming fearful of causing injury. Rehabilitation focuses on helping you move safely and confidently, using appropriate exercise to maintain strength, improve balance, support bone health, and reduce the risk of falls, while considering any individual precautions that may apply to your situation.

Peripheral neuropathy is a common side effect of certain chemotherapy treatments and can cause tingling, numbness, burning sensations, altered sensation, or weakness in the hands and feet. These symptoms can affect balance, mobility, confidence, and the ability to perform everyday tasks. Rehabilitation can help by addressing strength, balance, coordination, and movement strategies, while providing education and practical tools to help you manage symptoms and maintain independence.

Cancer and its treatment can affect the way you move, leaving you feeling less steady, less confident, or unable to participate in activities as easily as before. Changes in strength, sensation, fitness, joint mobility, fatigue, and treatment-related side effects can all contribute to reduced mobility and balance, making everyday tasks feel more challenging.

You may notice difficulty walking longer distances, climbing stairs, getting on and off the floor, navigating uneven surfaces, or returning to exercise and recreational activities. For some people, these changes can lead to a fear of falling or a loss of confidence in their body’s abilities.

Rehabilitation focuses on improving movement, balance, coordination, and physical confidence through targeted exercises and practical strategies tailored to your individual needs. The goal is to help you move more freely, feel more secure in your body, and maintain your independence, whether that’s keeping up with daily life, returning to activities you enjoy, or simply feeling more confident when you’re on your feet.

Loss of muscle mass, strength, and overall fitness is a common and often overlooked consequence of cancer and its treatment. This can occur due to reduced physical activity, fatigue, inflammation, changes in appetite and nutrition, and the direct effects of cancer on the body. In many cases, this leads to a condition known as sarcopenia, which is the progressive loss of skeletal muscle mass and function. Sarcopenia can develop quickly during periods of illness or treatment and may significantly impact mobility, energy levels, balance, and independence.

These changes are not always immediately obvious, but over time they can affect your ability to sustain physical effort, recover between activities, and tolerate daily demands. Tasks that once felt manageable may begin to require more effort, and overall stamina can gradually decline.

Drawing on her experience in oncology physiotherapy, musculoskeletal rehabilitation, and Clinical Pilates, Megan helps people rebuild strength, improve fitness, and restore physical function in a safe and progressive way. A structured, individualised rehabilitation program can support muscle recovery, enhance energy levels, and help you return to the activities that matter most to you.