TREATMENT OF SECONDARY LYM PHEDEMA OF THE UPPER LIMB WITH CYCLO 3 FORT

Abstract

Fifty seven patients with secondary lymphedema of the upper limb after previoustreatment for breast cancer were treated for 3 months with an extract of Ruscus + HesperidinMethyl Chalcone (CYCLO 3 FORT) or placebo according to a double-blind protocol in thecontext of a controlled clinical trial. All patients also underwent manual lymphatic drainagetwice a week for at least one month. With CYCLO 3 FORT, the reduction in volume of armedema, the main assessment criteria, was 12.9% after 3 months of treatment as compared witha placebo (p=0.009). Decreased edema tended to be more marked in the forearm comparedwith the upper arm where excess fat deposition seemed to dominate over excess fluidaccumulation.CYCLO 3 FORT was well tolerated with minimal adverse reaction.