University of Iowa researchers are launching a study to see if breast cancer survivors get relief from post-op problems by practicing yoga. Dr. Geraldine Jacobson, a U-of-I professor of radiation oncology, says women who endure the trials of breast cancer surgery have many similar difficulties afterwards.
Jacobson says they complain about tiredness, fatigue, anxiety and discomfort in their arm on the side of the surgery. She says exercise improves quality of life in breast cancer patients — and so does yoga — which is what sparked the study. In the study, half of the volunteers will be put through eight weeks of yoga classes while the other half, the control group, will not do yoga.
Jacobson says each of the patients will take detailed surveys before and after the eight weeks to gauge their level of depression, their quality of life and other elements, and then the results will be compared. She says they’re still looking for volunteers who can make twice-weekly trips to Iowa City over two months.
She says the only qualification is that the woman be over 18 and have completed breast cancer treatment. Jacobson says volunteers who are in the control group, those who don’t learn yoga, will be able to attend free yoga classes through the U-of-I once the study’s complete. For information, call (319) 353-8836.