Physiotherapy and Rehabilitation

Rebuilding strength, managing lymphedema, recovering mobility after surgery, and staying active during treatment.

Why Physiotherapy Matters

Cancer treatment takes a physical toll: surgery reduces mobility, chemotherapy causes fatigue and neuropathy, radiation causes stiffness, and prolonged bed rest leads to muscle loss. Physiotherapy addresses all of these. Evidence shows that patients who exercise during and after treatment recover faster, tolerate treatment better, and report better quality of life.

In India, cancer rehabilitation is still underdeveloped compared to Western countries. Many patients are simply told to rest. While rest is important during acute treatment, structured exercise and physiotherapy should begin as early as safely possible.

Common Indications

Post-mastectomy shoulder rehabilitation and lymphedema prevention. Post-abdominal surgery early mobilisation. Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (balance and proprioception exercises). Bone cancer rehabilitation after limb-salvage surgery or amputation. General deconditioning during prolonged treatment. Pelvic floor rehabilitation after prostate or cervical surgery.

Exercise During Treatment

Current guidelines recommend 150 minutes of moderate aerobic exercise per week during cancer treatment. This sounds like a lot, but it can be as simple as 20 minutes of walking daily. Start where you are: if you can only walk to the kitchen, that is your starting point. Gradually increase as tolerated.

Yoga, particularly gentle forms, has good evidence for improving fatigue, sleep, and quality of life during cancer treatment. Avoid hot yoga, extreme stretching, or inversions during active treatment. Swimming is excellent but avoid pools during neutropenic periods.

Cost and Access

Hospital-based physiotherapy: INR 300-800 per session. Private physiotherapy at home: INR 500-1,500 per visit. Lymphedema management (MLD + compression garments): INR 1,000-3,000 per session; garments INR 3,000-8,000. Many government hospitals include basic physiotherapy in post-surgical care. HealOnco includes physiotherapy assessment in the treatment pathway.

Frequently Asked Questions