Background: Lymphedema of the breast/chest wall after breast cancer treatment is often associated with pain and reduced quality of life. We conducted a pilot study to evaluate whether the use of a compression vest reduced symptoms of breast/chest wall edema in breast cancer patients. Methods and Results: This single-center study included patients (n = 25) with symptomatic breast/chest wall edema with a pain score of ≥3 on the Numerical Rating Scales (range 1-10). The patients were instructed to wear a compression vest (Lymphatrex, Class II) for 6 months. Wilcoxon signed-rank tests were used to compare differences in patient-reported pain intensity/severity. Analyses included all patients with available data. In total, 17 (68%) continued to wear their vests for 6 months, whereas the other 8 withdrew prematurely. At baseline, median pain severity (4.9, interquartile range [IQR] 3.6-6.0) and pain interference (4.3, IQR 2.1-5.9) scores were significantly higher compared with pain scores after wearing the compression vest for 6 months (1.8 IQR 1.0-4.8 and 1.4 IQR 0.9-4.4, resp.). Patient-reported breast/chest wall swelling decreased from 92% (n = 22) at baseline to 71% (n = 12) at 6 months. The prevalence of moderate/severe patient-reported breast/chest wall pain declined from 63% (n = 15) at baseline to 18% (n = 3) at 6 months. Physical, emotional, and social functioning improved over time and was comparable to scores of the Dutch reference population. Conclusion: The results of this pilot study suggest that a compression vest could be an acceptable and effective treatment option for patients with painful breast/chest wall edema. In compliant patients, swelling and pain was significantly reduced.
Keywords: breast cancer; breast edema; compression; pain; quality of life.