The clinical benefits of using hyperbaric oxygen therapy for breast cancer patients undergoing breast reconstruction has been described in a poster presentation at the 28th Annual Clinical Symposium on Advances in Skin & Wound Care held on October 23-27, 2013 at Lake Buena Vista, FL. In threatened mastectomy skin flaps treated at Good Samaritan Hospital,
Suffern, NY, over a 4 year, 15 patient period, an 87.5% success rate was realized
when hyperbaric oxygen therapy was used, against a success rate of only 14.2%
in cases where it was not used.
Laura
Sudarsky, MD, FACS, the study’s Principal Investigator, said, “Complications
from mastectomy and breast reconstruction can be devastating to our patients
and may delay their cancer treatment, resulting in longer hospitalizations.
This study indicates that hyperbaric treatment helps reduce some complications
so the patients can resume their lives and cancer treatment with less delay.”
Authors of the poster presentation,
titled “Hyperbaric Oxygen as an Adjunctive Therapy for Threatened Post
Mastectomy Skin Flaps in the Setting of Staged Prosthetic Breast Reconstruction,”
are: Donovan Rosas, MD; Laura Sudarsky, MD, FACS; Michele Gilbert MSN, NP-C;
all of Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, Suffern, NY; and, Glenn J.
Butler, CEO of the Life Support Technologies group (LST), Tarrytown, NY. (See below for link to the poster.)
Hyperbaric
treatment involves placing a patient in a specially constructed chamber under
increased atmospheric pressure and administering 100% oxygen for the patient to
breathe. From a medical standpoint, this
treatment does several things: it highly oxygenates tissue to help restore
viability, it promotes the building of capillary beds, kills bacteria, makes
several facets of the immune system more effective, and helps wounds heal
faster.
According
to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc., 1 out of 8 women will be
diagnosed with breast cancer during their lifetimes. The National Cancer Institute at the National
Institutes of Health estimates that 2,829,041 women are currently living with
breast cancer in the United States.
The
presentation had several important conclusions based on the successful, early
use of hyperbaric medicine for salvage of the reconstructed breast that
presented a threatened mastectomy skin flap. Necrosis represents one of the
most significant threats to successful breast reconstruction; in such cases,
early identification and initiation of hyperbaric therapy (HBOT) is critical. The
average time for initial HBOT was 8.57 days, whereas the lone HBOT failure has
been attributed to significant HBOT treatment delay. Aggressive surgical
debridement must also be used early in the treatment cycle and coupled with
HBOT to salvage breast reconstructions and improve patient outcomes.
Glenn
Butler, CEO of the Life Support Technologies group, which provides hyperbaric
medicine services to Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center and 8 other
hospitals, said, “This study shows how great an impact the proper use of
hyperbaric treatment has when coordinated with other medical disciplines. The
results are better outcomes for patients, reduced suffering, and savings in
medical costs. Based on these results, a larger study is warranted.”
For more information see:
Clinical Symposium on Advances in
Skin & Wound Care
Hyperbaric
Oxygen as an Adjunctive Therapy for Threatened Post Mastectomy Skin Flaps in
the Setting of Staged Prosthetic Breast Reconstruction
Good
Samaritan Regional Medical Center
Undersea
& Hyperbaric Medical Society (UHMS)
The
National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc.
National
Cancer Institute
http://www.cancer.gov/
About the Life Support Technologies Group (LST)
The Life Support Technologies Group (LST) is a Tarrytown,
NY-based medical and life-support engineering company specializing in Advanced
Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine Services to hospitals in the NY, NJ, CT region. LST has been in business for 20 years and
currently provides services to 9 hospitals.
Glenn
Butler, CEO
Life
Support Technologies Group
(914)
333-8412
