Breast cancer survivors have been getting bum advice. For decades, many doctors warned that lifting weights or even heavy groceries could cause painful arm swelling. New research shows that weight training actually helps prevent this problem.

    "How many generations of women have been told to avoid lifting heavy objects?" Dr. Eric Winer, breast cancer chief at the Dana-Farber Cancer Center in Boston, lamented after seeing the surprising results of the new study. "Women who were doing the lifting actually had fewer arm problems because they had better muscle tone."

    The study was led by Kathryn Schmitz, an exercise scientist at the University of Pennsylvania, and funded by the federal government. Results are in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.

    More than 2.4 million Americans are breast cancer survivors, and the study could mean a big difference in their quality of life. Cancer treatment-related arm swelling now appears to be one of many ailments made better by exercise - not worse, Schmitz said.

    "Fifty years ago we told people who had a heart attack not to exercise anymore," and people with sore backs to heal with bed rest, Schmitz said. "It was well-meaning advice but it was polar opposite of the truth."

    Women who have had radiation to the armpit, or lymph nodes removed to check for cancer, can suffer lymphedema - a buildup of fluids that causes painful and unsightly swelling of the arms or hands.

    To avoid it, doctors have advised women to avoid using the affected arm to lift toddlers, carry a heavy purse or scrub floors. Even activities like golf and tennis raised concern.

    Women think, "Oh, my God, I need to baby the arm," Schmitz said.

    Lifting weights - which boosts mood, muscle mass, bone strength and weight control - was thought to be a bad idea for women prone to lymphedema.

    Schmitz challenged that notion with a small study several years ago, finding that weight training did not make lymphedema worse. Her new study is the first one large and long enough to give clear proof that this is so, and even suggests that weightlifting can help.

    It involved 141 breast cancer survivors who had suffered lymphedema. Half were told not to change their exercise habits. The rest were given 90-minute weightlifting classes twice a week for 13 weeks at community gyms, mostly YMCAs.

    They wore a custom-fitted compression garment on the affected arm and gradually worked up to more challenging weights and repetitions. For the next 39 weeks, they continued these exercises on their own.

    The women's arms were measured monthly. After one year, fewer weightlifters had suffered lymphedema flare-ups - 14 percent versus 29 percent of the others. Weightlifters reported fewer symptoms and greater strength. Rates of change in arm size due to swelling were similar in both groups.

    "I found it was really very effective. It not only gave me strength and mobility but it improved my balance and coordination," said one participant, Clare Faber, 66, of suburban Philadelphia. "It really does offer women hope."

    Another participant, Gay McArthur, 56, of Smithfield, N.J., has continued weightlifting on her own since the study ended.

    "When I first got diagnosed with lymphedema, they said I couldn't lift more than five pounds," she said. But weight training caused no problems and has made her feel better, she said.

    It also should save money, though the study did not measure this, Wendy Demark-Wahnefried, of the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, wrote in an editorial in the medical journal. In the study, the group of weightlifters made only 77 visits to doctors or physical therapists for lymphedema flare-ups versus 195 visits for the others, she noted.

    Another part of the study is evaluating whether weight training can prevent a first case of lymphedema in breast cancer survivors; results are expected soon, Schmitz said.

    Breast cancer survivors should not rush into weight training - that could trigger problems. Schmitz suggests:

    -Have a certified fitness professional teach you how to do the exercises properly.

    -Start slow, with a program that gradually progresses.

    -Wear a well-fitting compression garment during workouts.

    乳腺癌的康復患者一直以來都在收到各種毫無價值的建議。過去的幾十年里，許多醫生警告說，舉重或者即使是搬動重物，都可能引起臂部的腫脹酸痛。新的研究表明，練習舉重實際上可以幫助避免這一問題。

    "曾有多少代婦女被告知說不要搬弄重物啊？"當波士頓丹娜-法伯癌癥研究中心的埃里克。溫納博士，看到新的研究所作出的出人意料的結論后，這樣悲嘆道。"事實上，婦女做提舉運動對臂部損傷甚少，因為她們能有更好的肌肉緊張度。"

    這項研究由賓夕法尼亞大學的訓練學家凱瑟琳。施米茨領銜，并受到聯邦政府的資助。研究結果發表在了周三出版的《新英格蘭醫學期刊》上。

    美國有超過240萬名乳腺癌康復患者，這項研究意味著他們的生活品質將大為改觀。施米茨說，與癌癥治療相關的臂部腫脹，目前被看做是許多小癥狀之一，可以通過訓練得以改善，而不是惡化。

    "五十年前，我們告誡患有心臟病的人們不要再做任何鍛煉，"而受疼痛困擾的人們也就此呆在床上等著康復，施米茨說。"這種建議的意向是好的，但卻徹底背離了事實。"

    那些腋下接受放射或移除淋巴結以檢查癌癥的婦女，可能會患上淋巴水腫--它阻塞了體液，會導致臂部和手部疼痛，并且產生難看腫脹。

    為了避免這一問題，醫生們曾建議婦女不要用患病的手臂去抱小孩、攜帶沉重的手提包或擦洗地板。甚至像高爾夫和網球這類運動也會引發擔憂。

    而女人們會想，"哦，天吶，我得好好照料這只手臂才行，"施米茨說。

    對于易于患上淋巴水腫的婦女們來說，練習舉重不是個好主意，盡管它可以改善情緒和肌肉質量，提升骨骼強度，還能調節體重。

    施米茨早在幾年前就通過一個小型的研究對以上說法提出了質疑，發現練習舉重不會導致淋巴腫脹惡化。此次是她進行的第一次新的大規模和長時間的研究，為她的論點給出了明確的證據，而且還指出舉重對康復患者有益處。

    研究針對141名患上了淋巴水腫的乳腺癌康復患者。其中有一半人被告知不要改變他們的鍛煉習慣。其余的人在社區體育館內參加每周兩次，每次90分鐘的舉重訓練課程，共持續13周。

    他們穿著為患病的手臂定制的緊身服裝，逐漸提升舉起的重量，增加練習的次數。在此后的39周時間里，他們依靠自身將這一鍛煉堅持了下去。

    這些婦女每月都會接受臂部檢查。一年后，練習舉重的人中淋巴水腫發作的人數比另一組要少--14%比29%.練習舉重者顯現的癥狀更少，而且力量更足。在兩組研究對象中，因為腫脹而引起的臂部尺寸的變動率相近。

    "我覺得舉重真的很管用。它不僅增強了我的力量和靈活性，而且也讓我的平衡感和協調性有了提高，"來自費城郊區的研究參與者，66歲的卡萊爾。法伯說。"這的確給了女人們希望。"

    另一位參與者是56歲的蓋伊。麥克阿瑟，來自新澤西州的史密斯場，她在研究結束后仍堅持去練習舉重。

    "我第一次被診斷有淋巴腫脹的時候，他們告訴我說我最多不能舉超過5磅的東西，"她說。但舉重訓練沒有引起任何問題，而且讓她感覺更棒了。

    盡管研究中沒有做評估，但練習舉重也會省錢，德克薩斯大學安德森腫瘤中心的溫迪。德馬克沃納菲瑞德，在這期醫學雜志的一篇評論中寫道。在此次研究中，她指出，在練習舉重的一組中，因為淋巴水腫發作去看醫生或物理治療師的次數僅有77次，而另一組有195次之多。

    研究的另一部分是評測舉重訓練能否幫助乳腺癌康復患者阻止淋巴水腫的出現；施米茨說，結果很快就能得到。

    但乳腺癌康復患者也不要急沖沖地就去練習舉重，那樣可能會出問題。

    施米茨建議：

    -找一位有資質的健康專家幫助你正確地練習。

    -開始先慢一些，制定一個計劃循序漸進。

    -在練習時穿一件合適的緊身衣。