COURSE DESCRIPTION
Individuals with a history of cancer or are in any phase of survivorship have a high likelihood of suffering adverse, long term and/or late effects of the disease itself or its treatment including: decreased strength, aerobic conditioning and range of motion, pain, peripheral neuropathy, fatigue and lymphedema. Abundant data support the importance and efficacy of providing oncology rehabilitation services to this patient population, however, limited clinical and educational experiences render many therapists uncertain about treating patients with a cancer history. The overarching purpose of this course is to provide the attendee with fundamental information that will allow him or her to provide better care to their patients with a cancer diagnosis.
This course will achieve this goal by introducing the attendee to:
- Fundamentals of cancer and its treatment
- Characteristics of major cancers including both blood and solid tumors
- Comorbidities that occur in conjunction with cancer and/or its treatment
- The use of exercise as a therapeutic intervention
- Rehabilitation in hospice and palliative care
- The development of a cancer rehabilitation program.
Included in each of these major subheadings will be descriptions of physical therapy implications and physical therapy treatments relevant to each subheading.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Select and utilize outcome measures appropriate for quantifying patient status and symptoms.
- Educate their patients and colleagues in the fundamentals of cancer biology, cancer treatments, and the four major types of cancers.
- Educate their patients who are at risk for, or are undergoing treatment for lymphedema, about critical issues related to risk reduction and safe and effective manual lymph drainage (MLD) and physical activity.
- Quantitively assess symptoms for at least four comorbidities related to cancer or its care.
- Safely and effectively use exercise as a therapeutic intervention in the treatment of cancer survivors.
- Use the FITT model to write an exercise prescription.
- Describe the basic pathophysiology, the symptomology and the physical therapy implications of at least two cancer related emergencies.
- Describe and prescribe appropriate palliative rehabilitation interventions for individuals with advanced cancer.
