Lymphoedema Wales Clinical Network (LWCN) works with patients, clinicians and academics to generate research and innovation in lymphoedema care.
Many of our research projects look at the education needs of healthcare professionals and have helped shape the education of nurses, therapists and doctors so that they have the learning resources they need to improve patient care. Tools developed from these projects are in regular use all around the world e.g. the genital oedema self-report tool.
New projects are constantly being deliberated to ensure that we spend our resources on the things that will have the greatest impact. At the moment, the ‘LymphAssistTM at home’ project (IRAS ID 311663) is looking at the value of home-based lymphoedema care using a special type of compression pump known as the LymphAssitTM.
Before this study, patients could be invited to weekly sessions of the LymphAssistTM in their local lymphoedema clinic. However, for some patients this posed a challenge in terms of access, whilst for services this relied on capacity (staff and clinic space being available, for example). Studies done elsewhere have shown that home-based use of these sorts of pumps is helpful to patients. As a result, this study has been developed to examine the value of LymphAssistTM at home. They study commenced in summer 2022 and is due to finish by the winter of 2023.