Table 2.
Participants baseline and medical characteristics of the groups
| Characteristic | Intervention (n = 12) | Control (n = 11) | P valuea |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age (years; Mean ± SD) | 55.1 ± 2.5 | 60.5 ± 3.6 | 0.230 |
| Range | 36–65 | 34–80 | |
| Number nodes removed (Mean ± SD) | 14.3 ± 2.6 | 11.2 ± 2.7 | 0.429 |
| Range | 5–30 | 2–25 | |
| How long lymphoedema (years; Mean ± SD) | 4.9 ± 1.6 | 5.5 ± 1.9 | 0.900 |
| Range | 6 months–20 years | 1 month–23 years | |
| How long post-surgery (years; Mean ± SD) | 1.2 ± 0.4 | 1.9 ± 0.7 | 0.822 |
| Range | 1 month–5 years | 1 month–8 years | |
| n % | n % | P valueb | |
| Occupation | |||
| Home, retired | 5 (42) | 8 (73) | 0.280 |
| Employed | 7 (58) | 3 (27) | |
| Fitness (self-scored) | |||
| Low | 2 (17) | 1 (9) | |
| Medium | 8 (67) | 8 (73) | 0.913 |
| High | 2 (17) | 2 (18) | |
| Most significant exercise | |||
| Walking | 8 (67) | 8 (73) | 0.890 |
| Gardening | 7 (58) | 7 (64) | 0.867 |
| Gym - organised exercise | 1 (8) | 8 (73) | 0.006 |
| Type of surgery | |||
| Lumpectomy | 5 (42) | 3 (27) | |
| Mastectomy | 7 (58) | 8 (73) | 0.882 |
| Type of lymph dissection | |||
| Sentinel node | 0 | 1 (9) | |
| Axillary clearance | 12 (75) | 10 (73) | 0.980 |
| Stage of breast cancer | |||
| Ductal Carcinoma In Situ (DCIS) | 0 | 1 (9) | |
| 1 | 3 (25) | 4 (36) | |
| 2 | 6 (50) | 5 (45) | 0.976 |
| 3 | 3 (25) | 1 (9) | |
| Treatment | |||
| Chemotherapy | 8 (66) | 6 (54) | 0.867 |
| Radiotherapy | 9 (75) | 7 (64) | 0.890 |
| Most common area of radiotherapy | |||
| Chest | 7 (58) | 7 (64) | |
| Axilla | 2 (17) | 2 (18) | 0.909 |
| Axilla and chest | 3 (25) | 2 (18) | |
| Lymphoedema dominant/non-dominant | |||
| Dominant | 7 (58) | 7 (64) | 0.867 |
| Non-dominant | 5 (42) | 4 (36) | |
*P < 0.05
a P values obtained using two-tailed independent samples t-test
b P values obtained using chi-square test with Yates correction