From the first moment my wife discovered
she had breast cancer, there was a deafening silence from the men I know. Even
ones whose wives, mothers or girlfriends had breast cancer seemed to have received
a gag order from some Central Cancer Command and did little more than mumble about
the experience. Not one to shut up for any known reason, I started this blog…
Every month, I’ll be highlighting breast cancer
research that is going on RIGHT NOW! Harvested from different websites, journals
and podcasts, I’ll translate them into understandable English and share them
with you. Today: see below for links to several articles.
Honestly, there
doesn’t seem to be much research into the effect of and prevention of
lymphedema in people who have to deal with it on an everyday basis.
While there are a
number of different aspect to living with lymphedema, during the summer in
Minnesota, bug bites fairly leap to the forefront.
Given the
ubiquitous nature of arthropods biting people who have lymphedema, you’d think
there were be a push to find a way to REALLY deal with it in the long term.
But there’s not.
According to what I could find, there are only two aspects of the whole bites-n-lymphedema
issue: protect and prevent, treatment.
Protect and prevent
is all about “shields” and are essentially of two kinds: chemical and physical.
(Don’t waste your time with the “sonic bug repellers” – they don’t work (https://www.nachi.org/ultrasonic-pest-repellers.htm)).
First, the
definition: “When an insect bites, it injects a toxin into the skin that causes
the resulting itching. The reaction in lymphedema-affected tissues to insect
bites can be potentially be severe. In response to the bite, there may be a
temporary increase in the swelling of the affected limb. Also, it may take
lymphedema-affected tissues longer than normal tissues to clear this substance
from the body.
“If you have
multiple bites on an affected limb, seek medical advice immediately!
Don’t scratch! A
cool wet cloth or cold pack will ease the itching and swelling. If the itching
is severe, seek medical help. As long as no infection present it should be safe
to perform self-massage to help the body clear toxins from this area. When
doing this, massage the area above the sting, i.e. closer to the trunk.”
This is the main
reason behind taking protective measures for people who have to deal with lymphedema – to prevent swelling. Another
reason is to, of course, prevent the transmission of disease.
The chemical
premise of protection from bug bites goes like this:
“The cornerstone
of prevention efforts involves the use of effective insect repellents which can
significantly reduce the likelihood of bites from mosquitoes and ticks...DEET
(N, N-diethyl-meta-toluamide) is the most well studied, and most effective,
broad-spectrum repellent against biting arthropods. The World Health
Organization and the CDC recognize DEET as the gold standard insect repellent
and is the agent against which other repellents are measured…Alternatives to
DEET include picaridin (REPEL Lemon based…brand, as well as Wondercide and
Sawyer – sold at various and sundry places) and PMD (P-menthane-3,8-diol)…a
component of lemon eucalyptus extract that has been shown to have effectiveness
and duration of action similar to DEET (Cutter Lemon Eucalyptus is one of many).”
The physical
premise for protection lies with clothing:
“…light-colored
pants, long-sleeved shirts, and hats also reduce the likelihood of sustaining
insect bites…and the application of permethrin, a synthetic insecticide derived
from the chrysanthemum plant, to clothing (never directly to the skin)
,greatly improves the deterrence of insect bites…Studies regarding the use
of mosquito nets, especially those impregnated with permethrin, demonstrate
they are highly effective in preventing bites and stings from a variety of arthropods.”
(Sawyer brand of CLOTHING, GEAR, and TENT spray – only! ( https://sawyer.com/videos/permethrin-clothing-gear-insect-repellent/)
Not on skin!)
Below you’ll find
links to articles and insight into preventing bug bites and avoiding the
increased pain and irritation of insect bites, which can only add to the misery
of lymphedema.
Resources: https://www.countryliving.com/gardening/g3463/how-to-prevent-mosquitoes/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=arb_ga_clv_d_bm_hp_g3463&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8Km7nr_M6QIVQ77ACh1AyQAyEAMYAiAAEgKhjfD_BwE,
https://www.bugbaffler.com/collections/insect-protection/products/bugbaffler-insect-protective-pants,
http://www.lymphnotes.com/article.php/id/462/,
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK537235/,
https://www.amazon.com/Living-Well-Lymphedema-Ann-Ehrlich/dp/0976480603,
https://lymphnet.org/, https://www.pca.state.mn.us/mosquito,
https://odditymall.com/mosquito-blocking-clothing,
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