Award Winning Sports Massage in Shropshire
What Is Lymphoedema?
​Lymphoedema is a progressive chronic condition which affects large numbers of people in the UK. Recent studies suggest that are that over 240,000 people in the UK are living with Lymphoedema with an estimated 3.93 people per 1000, rising to 28.75 people per 1000 in the over 85 age group according to Moffatt et al, 2016. Lymphoedema is sometimes also referred to as ‘Chronic Oedema’ and is a serious condition which can have major impacts on a persons physical and psychosocial wellbeing. It is signified by chronic swelling, more commonly in one or more limbs, which is due to a failure of the lymphatic system. The Lymphatic System is the bodies mechanism for transporting waste fluid (Lymph) from around the body and cleaning it in a series of Lymph Nodes before returning it back to the blood circulation as clean water. The importance of the Lymphatic System doesn’t end there though; The Lymphatic System also helps to regulate fluid balance, absorb dietary fats and is the major player in our immune system. Therefore, any insufficiency within this system can cause more than just swelling (which on its own is very serious), it can affect the transport of essential dietary fats and fat soluble vitamins (A,D,E & K) and reduce our ability to recognise and fight off infections. The swelling can also lead to pain, discomfort and skin breakdown resulting in open sores and poorly healing wounds as well as an increased risk in serious skin infections (Cellulitis).
Chronic Lymphoedema occurs when swelling has been present for 3 months or more and can be caused by many factors such as cancer, surgery, injury or hereditary/genetic traits. It is present in 20% of people following breast cancer surgery and 40% of people following gynaecological cancer treatment or malignant melanoma. It is also common amongst people with venous disease and/or obesity.
For more information on Lymphoedema, please click here to visit the British Lymphology Website; What Is Lymphoedema
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How Can It Be Treated?
Lymphoedema is treated by a combination of several methods;
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Compression; either by bandaging the swollen area or through the use of compression garments (coming to APSMT in late 2026/early 2027)
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Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD)
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Deep Oscillation (coming to APSMT in late 2026/early 2027)
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Red Light Therapy (coming to APSMT in late 2026/early 2027)
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Increased mobility
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Skin care
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Surgical options
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All of these options are used to manage the symptoms of Lymphoedema but there is currently no cure for it. At present I offer MLD therapy to help reduce the swelling and therefore reduce the size of the swollen limb/area. This is a developing service for me and over the coming year I will be introducing more of the above techniques in order to provide a more rounded and comprehensive service to my customers.
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FG-MLD™
I practice a form of Manual Lymphatic Drainage called Fluoroscopy Guided Manual Lymphatic Drainage (FG-MLD™) which is often also referred to as ‘Fill and Flush’. I have chosen this methodology because it has been scientifically developed and its effects have been clearly demonstrated through rigorous testing. The original work on FG-MLD was carried out in the late 1980’s by Professor Jean Paul Belgrado along with Professor Albert Leduc with assistance form Pierre Bourgeois. Using a fluoroscopic imaging technique, they observed variations in lymphatic flow using different modes of MLD and used this to design the method of FG-MLD™. More recently, in 2013, Prof. Belgrado demonstrated using fluoroscopy that many of the techniques taught by other MLD schools are not as effective as those developed through FG-MLD™.
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My Qualifications
I have been trained in FG-MLD™ by the Lymphoedema Training Academy in Stafford. I currently hold qualifications in Lymphoedema Management for Manual Therapists and Manual Lymphatic Drainage for Post Surgery. I will be undertaking my advanced training in Lymphoedema management at the end of 2026, ready to be implemented in early 2027. I am a member of both MLD-UK (The National Association of Manual Lymphatic Drainage therapists) and The British Lymphology Society (BLS). I regularly attend symposia and conferences related to lymphoedema. Additionally, my qualifications require me to revalidate my certification every two years. This means that you can be assured that my training is not only of the highest quality but that I need to keep up to date with the latest clinical knowledge in order to maintain those qualifications and therefore my professional memberships.
