St Catherine’s Hospice Opens Specialist Children’s Lymphoedema Service

The St Catherines children’s Lymphoedema Clinic is one of just four specialist centres in the UK for children living with the incurable condition, and its groundbreaking work with youngsters is being held up as a shining example for others to follow.
Our new Children’s Lymphoedema service is based in a dedicated children’s clinic which provides youngsters with a relaxing, child-friendly environment at Broadoaks child development centre in Leyland.
This clinic is for children with lymphoedema – a painful and debilitating swelling of the limbs caused by damage to or obstruction of the lymph nodes, often as a result of cancer treatments but also arising as symptoms of other illnesses affecting children.
The clinic is run by the Lymphoedema clinical specialists and supported by Dr Jacqueline Todd, a leading clinical expert in Lymphoedema. She is responsible for developing a national children’s charter for management of the condition, as well as an international framework for children’s Lymphoedema care and has written widely on the subject.

Dr Jacqueline Todd says: “Before we opened the children’s clinic, youngsters were having to be treated alongside adults, many of whom were also suffering from cancer and had symptoms which might have been quite distressing for children to see.
The team did not want to treat and see children in the Hospice environment and have worked with local children’s services to create a dedicated centre where they can feel relaxed and have fun while they are being treated.”

The treatment for Lymphoedema involves massage, skincare, compression treatment and exercise techniques which teach youngsters to manage their condition themselves.
Lymphoedema can be a difficult condition to live with and a large number of people don’t know or understand anything about it.
The purpose of our care is to manage the condition and control the swelling so that children can lead normal lives and have confidence in themselves – as well as to educate others so they have a better understanding about what these youngsters are going through.

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