None listed
Conditions
Brief summary
The overall aim of this research is to evaluate whether group education and individual monitoring of recovery delivered by telehealth improves follow-up attendance rates compared with usual face to face care for breast cancer patients who have undergone axillary dissection. Who is it for? You may be eligible to join this study if you are a male or female aged 18 years or over and have undergone breast wide local excision or mastectomy and axillary lymph node dissection for breast cancer at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. To be eligible to receive the telehealth service, patients must be able to access an Internet-enabled computer device within their own home. Study details Four to six weeks after axillary dissection at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital, all patients will receive group lymphoedema education and individual review by a physiotherapist. There will be two groups in this study. One group will be reviewed face-to-face at Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (as is standard practice). The other group will be reviewed in their home remotely using telehealth. Attendance rates will be compared between groups, and all participants will be asked to complete a number of questionnaires at 3, 5 and 8 months post breast surgery in order to evaluate lymphoedema symptoms, shoulder function, scar appearance, satisfaction and costs. It is hoped that telehealth can help to address high nonattendance rates at lymphoedema education and review sessions post surgery.
Interventions
The intervention will consist of education and monitoring for early lymphoedema post breast surgery provided and conducted via by Telehealth. The group lymphoedema education session will include information regarding lymphoedema, risk minimisation practices, and progression of post-operative exercises to optimise recovery of shoulder ROM and strength. This session will be approximately one hour. Following the group education session, participants will undertake a 1:1 remote assessment with the
The intervention will consist of education and monitoring for early lymphoedema post breast surgery provided and conducted via by Telehealth. The group lymphoedema education session will include information regarding lymphoedema, risk minimisation practices, and progression of post-operative exercises to optimise recovery of shoulder ROM and strength. This session will be approximately one hour. Following the group education session, participants will undertake a 1:1 remote assessment with the physiotherapist, to be scheduled on the same day. This session allows the patient ask questions and raise concerns, includes measurement of shoulder range of motion and an examination of the scar via telemedicine. This section will take 30 minutes. the overall contact will be 1.5 hours. The patients will all be at a similar stage post surgery but the 30 minute session will be individualized as to surgery. Some patients may have had full mastectomies , others excision of lump only. The session will be a once only session provided in the patient's home via a telehealth link. It will be an individualized session and will last 1.5 hours. The telehealth intervention will utilise eHAB® (eHAB), a clinically validated telerehabilitation system whose software platform allows multi-point groups and individual assessments. eHAB has been previously validated for lymphodema measurements and range of joint motion in musculoskeletal assessments. The session will be provided by senior physiotherapists expert in the management of breast cancer and preventing, detecting and treating lymphodema post breast surgery. It will be scheduled between 4 to 6 weeks post breast surgery.
Sponsors
Royal Brisbane & Womens' Hospital
Study design
Allocation
Non-randomised trial
Intervention model
Parallel
Primary purpose
Educational / counselling / training
Masking
Open (masking not used)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
All
Age
18 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
Patients included will be male or female, over 18 years, having undergone breast wide local excision or mastectomy and axillary lymph node dissection for breast cancer at Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital. To be eligible to receive the telehealth service, patients must be able to access an Internet-enabled computer device within their own home.
Exclusion criteria
Those patients that require an accredited interpreter or have significant visual, hearing or cognitive deficits will be excluded. Breast cancer surgery patients who have not undergone axillary lymph node dissection will be excluded, as these patients have a low risk for lymphoedema and having not had a drain in situ postoperatively, recover their shoulder movement more easily.
Outcome results
None listed