Which of the following is the most common presenting symptom of radiation Plexitis?
Sensory symptoms, such as numbness, paresthesia, and dysesthesia, along with swelling and weakness of the arm, are the predominant presenting symptoms.
What is radiation-induced brachial Plexopathy?
Radiation-induced brachial plexus neuropathy (RIBPN) is a delayed non-traumatic injury to the brachial plexus. It is a rare condition that occurs following radiation therapy to the chest wall, neck, and/or axilla in patients previously treated for cancer.
What is RIBP?
Radiation-induced brachial plexopathy (RIBP) is one of the best described forms of RIPN and is often seen in patients treated for lymphoma, breast, and lung cancer. 2. RIBP incidence is correlated with the irradiation technique and it has become less common over the past 50 years.
Is Plexopathy a neuropathy?
Brachial plexopathy is a form of peripheral neuropathy. It occurs when there is damage to the brachial plexus. This is an area on each side of the neck where nerve roots from the spinal cord split into each arm’s nerves.
Does radiation shrink breast?
In time radiotherapy can cause the breast tissue to change shape or shrink in size a little. This can happen to your natural breast tissue or a reconstructed breast. After radiotherapy, the breast might feel hard and less stretchy. This is due to a side effect called radiation fibrosis.
What makes up the brachial plexus?
The brachial plexus is a network (plexus) of nerves (formed by the anterior rami of the lower four cervical nerves and first thoracic nerve (C5, C6, C7, C8, and T1). This plexus extends from the spinal cord, through the cervicoaxillary canal in the neck, over the first rib, and into the armpit.
What is radiculopathy Plexopathy?
Radiculopathy or ‘pinched nerve’ describes various conditions in which one or more of your nerves are not functioning properly. Plexopathy is a disorder that affects an entire network or region of nerves, including the lymph vessels and blood vessels.
How is brachial plexopathy related to breast cancer?
Brachial plexopathy in breast cancer. Background: Brachial plexopathy is a well-recognized complication of breast cancer, most attributed to late effects of radiation. However, direct involvement of brachial plexus by recurrent breast cancer occurs.
What are the symptoms of radiation induced plexopathy?
Radiation-induced plexopathy (RIP) is a neurologic impairment of the peripheral nervous system, at the level of the brachial or lumbosacral plexus, due to sequelae from radiation therapy. RIP presents most commonly with nonspecific neurologic changes that can include a combination of numbness, paresthesias, pain, and weakness.1,2.
How is brachial plexus affected by radiation therapy?
The incidence of brachial plexopathy was significantly higher when the axillary dose of radiation therapy was more than 50 Gy than when it was 50 Gy or less (5.6% vs 1.3%, P = 0.004). This is consistent with our own observations. All 22 patients with brachial plexopathy in our series had received more than 60 Gy of radiation to the plexus [12].
How is brachial plexus neuropathy ( RBP ) treated?
The incidence and latency period of radiation-induced brachial plexopathy (RBP) were assessed in 79 breast cancer patients by a neurological follow-up examination at least 60 months (range 67-130 months) after the primary treatment. All patients were treated primarily with simple mastectomy, axillary nodal sampling and radiotherapy (RT).