Breast Cancer & Yoga: Expert Insights with Breast Cancer Surgeon Doreen Wiggins MD

Today host Rachel talks to Breast Cancer Surgeon Doreen Wiggins MD about yoga and breast cancer. In this episode, Dr. Wiggins helps us to better understand our breast cancer risk and shares some simple actions that we can take to reduce that risk. She also explains what steps we can take to improve the potential outcome of cancer treatment if we are diagnosed with cancer and shares how we can modify our yoga practice to better suit our needs both before and during cancer treatment. Listen to this episode to learn how yoga can reduce your risk of cancer, tips for identifying lymphedema warning signs in yoga students, and how the lymphatic system is like the Cinderella system of the body. Show Notes: Current statistics on breast cancer [3:33] Risk levels for breast cancer [4:47] Preventing breast cancer [8:33] Defining hormone-positive breast cancers [12:50] Exercises to ward off breast cancer [15:40] How can yoga reduce the risk of cancer [17:47] Yoga during cancer treatment [20:24] Asana during cancer treatment [25:50] Tips for yoga practice before and after radiation therapy [32:26] Managing the fear of cancer recurrence with yoga [34:33] Understanding lymphodema [38:59] Tips for yoga teachers identifying lymphedema warning signs [41:13] Doreen's takeaways [44:04] Links Mentioned: Watch this episode on YouTube Moving Beyond the Fear of Cancer Recurrence by Dr. Doreen Wiggins Insights and Reflections on COVID-19 from a Surgeon by Dr. Doreen Wiggins The Benefits of Skeletal Muscle for Cancer Prevention & Survival by Dr. Doreen Wiggins You can learn more about this episode, and see the full show notes at YogaMedicine.com/podcast-51. And you can find out more about insider tips, online classes or information on our teacher trainings at YogaMedicine.com. To support our work, please leave us a 5 star review with your feedback on iTunes/Apple Podcasts.