HJAR Jan/Feb 2023

HEALTHCARE JOURNAL OF ARKANSAS I  JAN / FEB 2023 53 James B. Saviers II, MS, OTR/L, CLT-LANA CARTI Cancer Center treatment. At the root of all innovation in the field of lymphedema treatment is a desire to see patients win. At CARTI, patients will come in on a weekly basis after experiencing pain, swelling, and loss of function after surgery or treatment. Our goal is to show them that they don’t have to hurt or lose the way of living that they’re accustomed to. We work with them to achieve their goals and regain their strength, whether it’s through preven- tative methods or treatment for swelling that’s already present. There’s nothing more gratifying than seeing a patient regain their full range of motion after coming in with chronic pain, and we’ll do anything we can to see more and more of those success sto- ries play out. n James Saviers II,MS,OTR/L,CLT-LANA,specializes in lymphedema and breast cancer rehabilitation at CARTI Cancer Center in Little Rock.He holds aMaster of Science in OccupationalTherapy from the Univer- sity of Oklahoma inTulsa and a Bachelor of Science in Exercise Sports Science from the University ofTulsa. Prior to joining the CARTI team,he gained experience in both pediatric care and lymphedema treatment, giving hima unique insight to the field and a passion for helping patients feel like themselves again. tape measure or inconsistency in tension can lead to skewed numbers. New technol- ogy employs bioimpedance to measure the two extremities via an electrical frequency that runs through the body. This method is more sensitive to changes when tested consistently over time and can trigger an automatic referral to begin treatment for lymphedema. CARTI’s approach to care At CARTI, we’re able to help patients prac- tice prevention for lymphedema by com- ing alongside them for the entirety of their cancer journey. Many patients in more rural communities previously had no access to lymphedema specialists, and our teamhelps ensure they get the personalized care they need. Working hand-in-hand with CARTI’s team of breast surgeons, we’re able to see patients preoperatively and understand their needs from the very beginning. This helps prevent more than just lymphedema — it helps keep patients where they are prior to surgery or radiation therapy and prevent loss of function all the way through their How prevention makes a difference The extreme nature of the later stages of lymphedema is the very reason many ap- proaches to treatment have shifted toward prevention. Catching lymphedema in its earliest stages can go miles in keeping it from becoming a chronic condition, sav- ing countless patients from experiencing pain, swelling, and loss of function. In recent years, we’ve seen a shift toward lymphede- ma prevention even in breast cancer surger- ies — some biopsies are now taking as few as one to seven lymph nodes as opposed to 20 or more. These kinds of biopsies, along with other innovative surgical methods, are paving the way for fewer instances of late- stage lymphedema. Additionally, advances in technology are allowing lymphedema specialists to treat patients with millimeter accuracy. His- torically, basic tape measure has always been used to determine the severity of a patient’s swelling in an extremity by mea- suring the swollen extremity and compar- ing it to the other. This has been effective but leaves room for human error — an old “Catching lymphedema in its earliest stages can go miles in keeping it from becoming a chronic condition, saving countless patients from experiencing pain, swelling, and loss of function.”