I knew I wanted to help people feel better but through the first year of my 18 month program I really wasn't sure exactly how I was going to put this work into practice for myself.
Then one day, near the beginning of my final term, I was listening to a panel of speakers describe the different types of practices they ran and populations they worked with and one speaker talked about their experience caring for their grandfather during his illness and death and I was mesmerized.
Oncology massage had entered my world and blown my mind.
I remember thinking, “wow, what if this had been around for my mom 25 years ago when she was in the thick of cancer treatment at only 38 with a young family at home?”
And then I thought, “what if this could be there for ME should I be diagnosed myself?”
The idea that human touch and connection could be utilized for relief from difficult side effects during such a challenging time in someone's life touched me deeply and I was hooked.
A dozen years in I am more enamored than ever with the power of this work and its ability to not only transform a person's physical experience through and beyond cancer but to support their mental and emotional well-being too.
And despite the fact that oncology massage is now a recognized and beneficial modality both among massage therapists and integrative care centers, it is amazing how little people know about it.
In the simplest terms Oncology Massage is the professional practice of massaging people who are living with a cancer experience.
An Oncology Massage Therapist uses a variety of modifications and adjustments to traditional massage therapy techniques in order to meet the unique and ever changing needs of someone in treatment for cancer or living with a history of cancer.
These modifications aren't just about using lighter touch or avoiding certain areas.
A trained oncology massage therapists studies cancer and cancer treatments as a large part of their specialized training.
A well-educated therapist is able to use critical thinking skills for each individual who comes in no matter how simple or complex their medical conditions/history may appear.
Oncology massage is more than just about who we are working with.
A person in treatment for cancer or living with a cancer history can go get a massage anywhere with anyone and just because the client has a cancer experience does not make their session an “oncology massage”.
Massage therapy typically focuses on the manual manipulation of muscles and soft tissue to release muscle tension and encourage systemic relaxation.
And even with this simple foundation there are many ways to utilize this work for different populations and purposes:
Each of these examples requires a therapist to have:
This is the same for oncology massage.
A safe massage therapy care plan for someone with a recent cancer diagnosis, in active treatment, or living with a cancer history, revolves around the short and long-term side effects created by the cancer itself and the treatment interventions like surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.
The most common changes made to make a session an “oncology massage” are around:
These changes are all driven by not only what we are trying to treat (pain, nausea, fatigue, etc..) but also by what potential harm might be done if not approached in the correct way.
There are numerous factors that have to be considered when working with oncology clients and many of them don't end when treatment does.
Here are some of the things we look out and adapt for when performing oncology massage:
And to be honest this isn't even everything that we have to think about before we put our hands on you each and every time!
With all of these considerations it might make you wonder if it's worth getting a massage during or after cancer treatment but the truth is that the benefits are immense!
