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Current Research: Integrative Medicine
October 16-17, 2017 Chicago, USA
Yoga and Physiotherapy Congress
Yoga and Physiotherapy 2017
Role of yoga in intervention of physical impairments following treatment for head and
neck cancer
Stephen Chao
SUNY at Stony Brook, USA
I
n 2016, it is estimated that 61,760 individuals will be diagnosed with head and neck cancer (HNC) in the United
States, with approximately 13,190 deaths from the disease. This can include mantle-field radiation for treatment
of Non-Hodgkins lymphoma, tonsillar cancer and oral cavity cancers. Mainstay treatment is combination of
surgery, adjuvant chemotherapy and radiation therapy. Side effects from these interventions have a wide sequella
of physical impairments ranging from radiation fibrosis, dropped head syndrome, cervical dystonia and impaired
proprioception of the neck and trunk. These side effects can have prolonged latency of onset as well as a slow
recovery period, which makes rehabilitation challenging. Furthermore, effectively creating a plan of care that
fits within current reimbursement models can be untenable given the pernicious nature of these impairments.
Yoga is growing in its use for physical therapy in the patient with cancer; however it is underutilized and under-
explored as an intervention for patients with myelopathy and radiation fibrosis of the head and neck. Not only
can yoga be an effective adjunct to conventional physical therapy, it can be a non-clinical adjunct to maintain
functional improvement after the conclusion of PT. The objective of this presentation is to share the experience
gained through initial efforts in the outpatient cancer rehab setting and introduce yoga as a safe, cost effective
adjunct to the physical therapy care of the patient with cancer following cancer treatments directed at the head
and neck which improves quality of life, self-care tasks and increases functional capacity. A secondary goal
of this presentation is to encourage other rehabilitation departments to collect data on the effectiveness and
implementation of yoga programs in outpatient oncology rehabilitation.
stephen.chao@stonybrook.edu