Lymphoedema 

Lymphoedema is a chronic (long-term) condition that causes swelling in the body's tissue. This can lead to pain and a loss of mobility.

Lymphoedema usually affects the arms or legs, although in some cases there may be swelling in the:

• chest
• head
• genitals

Lymphoedema is caused by damage or disruption to the lymphatic system (see box, left).

One function of the lymphatic system is to drain excess fluid from tissues. If the lymphatic system is disrupted or damaged, it can lose this ability and the excess fluid will cause the tissue to swell.

Types of lymphoedema

There are two main types of lymphoedema:

• Primary lymphoedema develops at birth or shortly after puberty and is caused by faulty genes.
• Secondary lymphoedema is caused by damage to the lymphatic system as a result of an infection, injury, trauma or cancer.

Secondary lymphoedema often develops as a side effect of cancer treatment. Surgery is often necessary to remove lymph glands to prevent a cancer from spreading. This can damage the lymphatic system. 

Radiotherapy, where controlled doses of high-energy radiation are used to destroy cancer cells, can also damage the lymphatic system.

How common is lymphoedema?

It is estimated that 1 in every 10,000 people are affected by primary lymphoedema.

Secondary lymphoedema is a relatively common condition, affecting an estimated 100,000 people in the UK.

Secondary lymphoedema occurs more frequently in women, possibly because it can sometimes be a side effect of breast cancer treatment.

Cancer Research UK estimates than one in five women may have lymphoedema in their arm after they have had radiotherapy or lymph nodes removed to treat breast cancer.

Outlook

There is no cure for lymphoedema, but it is possible to control the symptoms using a combination of different techniques, such as massage and compression garments. See Lymphoedema - treatment for more information.

People with lymphoedema are more vulnerable to infection. This is because infection-fighting white blood cells, called lymphocytes, which travel in the lymphatic system, are prevented from reaching the part of the body where they are needed.

A bacterial infection of the skin called cellulitis is one of the most commonly reported infections in people with lymphoedema.