Program Helps Women With Post-Cancer Fatigue - Health News ...

POSTED: 11:54 am EST December 26, 2011
UPDATED: 1:53 pm EST December 26, 2011

BALTIMORE -- One of the big complaints of cancer patients who have gone through surgery and chemo is that, even a couple years after the fact, there is overwhelming fatigue and not being able to feel like their old selves.As WBAL?s Donna Hamilton reported in Monday?s Woman?s Doctor, there is a program to help women with that. It?s called Be Well, Stay Healthy. Lisa Horton, a 55-year-old pediatrician, went through a mastectomy, chemo and breast reconstruction in late 2007 and early 2008. She couldn?t shake the fatigue.?It was beginning to affect how much work I could get done,? Horton said. ?It was affecting my social life, and I couldn't understand why I was still tired.? Mercy Medical Center Dr. Kath Helzlsouer said that?s a common complaint after cancer. A pilot study was done on ways to get energy back, and it reduced fatigue by almost 40 percent. ?It was quite an impact,? Helzlsouer said. ?It was better than any other intervention we have out there, including depression and mood too. It was quite an impact.?The program deals with the mind-body connection and includes teaching exercise ideas, group support, diet and taking time for one?s self.?People know what they need to do, it?s how do you go about doing it,? Helzlsouer said. ?So exercise is an important thing to do to reduce fatigue. And it's also important for weight control, and weight is a problem a lot of women have, especially with chemotherapy.?The program struck a chord with Horton, who said she previously shied away from the camera.?I lost 70 pounds. I exercise three to five days a week,? she said. ?If I miss it, I feel it. I'm not obsessed with exercise. It's just a part of what I do.?She called what has happened a metamorphosis and said she feels healthier than she did at 26 years old.The Be Well, Stay Healthy program is free and is recommended for cancer patients after they?ve completed treatment.Anyone can attend, not just patients at Mercy, Hamilton said.

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Source: http://www.wbaltv.com/health/30075851/detail.html

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