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After Breast Cancer Treatment: an osteopathic approach
1 in 8 women in Australia will be diagnosed with breast cancer in their lifetime. Thankfully the 5-year survival rate is over 90%, however as they try to move forward with their lives, they continue to deal with the long-term side effects of their treatment journey.
This treatment commonly results in significant scarring, adhesions, fibrous tissue, hard and lumpy breasts, rippled or contracted breast implants and even chronic pain. Current management is focused on exercise prescription or self-massage advice leaving a significant gap in the post-treatment care of breast cancer patients which osteopathy is well placed to help fill.
This one-day course will expand your understanding of the different types of breast cancer, how they are diagnosed, the medical treatments patients undergo and the impact of each treatment on the tissues of the body. Drawing on current research, you will learn how the common side effects develop and how to apply an osteopathic approach to caring for these patients during their recovery.
After Breast Cancer has a strong practical focus including treatment protocols that you can use to make a significant impact on your patients’ lives by relieving discomfort, improving the look and feel of affected breast tissue, and allowing patients to feel comfortable in their bodies again. Many of the techniques learned can be applied to any form of post-traumatic or post-surgical scar.
Learning Outcomes
Theory Component
- Pre-learning video covering types, grades and stages of breast cancer and their prevalence
- Medical treatment protocols in breast cancer including lumpectomy, mastectomy, sentinel node biopsy (SNB), axillary lymph node dissection (ALND), radiation therapy, DIEP/TRAM reconstructions and more
- The impact on the body of each modality of treatment particularly on tissue texture including external and internal scarring, fibrous tissue and adhesions
- Other common side effects including Axillary Web Syndrome (cording), Post-Mastectomy Pain Syndrome, seroma and induration
- Who you can treat, and at what stage of treatment you can safely and effectively intervene
- An osteopathic perspective on managing patients during and after their medical treatment protocol
- The future of osteopathy in this field – current treatment protocols and their limitations and how you can help
Practical Component
- Clinical assessment of the breast cancer patient
- Internal and external scar tissue and adhesions
- Treatment of cording and capsular contraction
- Symptomatic relief for patients undergoing chemotherapy
Course Details
This course is open to osteopaths of all genders.
In the practical, participants practise breast palpation and techniques on each other, so you will be asked to expose breast tissue. All techniques are undertaken only with consent and with all due sensitivity. Where possible, palpation is done underneath draping. Bras will need to be removed, so please bring a thin cotton singlet to wear. If you would prefer not to be a model for a technique, let the presenter know on the day.
The course will run from 8:30AM to 4:30PM with around 1 hour of pre-learning videos. Places are limited to 20 attendees. It also includes snacks, printed notes and an e-certificate of attendance for your CPD records. The course can be counted as 8 hours CPD.
About the Presenter
Amanda Hannaford is an experienced osteopath who works exclusively with breast cancer patients. She currently practises as part of the interdisciplinary team at the Northern Beaches Breast Clinic, the Mater Hospital’s Centre For Wellbeing and is the founder and director of Restore Health & Wellness in St Leonards, Sydney.
Amanda’s patients are referred by Oncology Breast Surgeons, Radiation Oncologists, Medical Oncologists and McGrath Breast Care Nurses. She is enthusiastic about the future of osteopathy in this field and has developed her After Breast Cancer CPD course to encourage other osteopaths to feel comfortable to care for these patients in their own practices.
Amanda has been practicing in Sydney for 20 years and has been an osteopathic university lecturer and a registration board examiner.
Find out more about Amanda Hannaford’s experience here.
Attendee Feedback
The way I've been describing it to people is, ‘sometimes you do a course and it might be good, but a bit watery. This course was juicy’!!
Amanda is such a genuinely engaging and inspiring teacher. She is warm and fun and has the life experience to back it up. I would recommend this course to anyone thinking of doing it!! I'm so excited to start helping women post breast cancer!
Roz Hill
As an osteopath and someone with a lived experience of breast cancer, I am so pleased that this course was created. I think osteopaths/manual therapists have so much to offer these patients. I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in working with patients with a history of breast cancer.
Reena Murray
Loved it all! It was very useful to have the pre-learning set up as you've done it. The face to face was great and Amanda was an excellent presenter. I felt very comfortable with all the hands-on learning; thank you for creating a safe, supportive and welcoming space of learning. And the handbook is an amazing resource. Thank you so much.
Narelle Crabbe
Amanda is a fantastic presenter! The course content was excellent with a great mix of practical techniques to go along with the theory. The techniques are just as relevant to any patient undergoing wound healing post-surgery or trauma. As the only male practitioner at the course I would like to thank Amanda and the rest of the course participants for being so inclusive and welcoming.
Tomas Leszczynski
Amanda was so great in providing a good depth of knowledge and demonstrating the immense growth she has achieved in this field. What an asset to osteopathy! I also appreciated learning about referral ideas and things doctors/GPs in this field appreciate seeing in letters to build a good referral source. As someone who has completed several women's health osteopathy courses in Australia and the UK, this course really provided entirely new knowledge to me.
Sarah
Amanda should get an OAM for her work helping women after breast cancer.
Nicole Wilson