Pelvic Health & Cancer Rehab

During their lifetime, nearly 1 in 2 Canadians will be diagnosed with cancer. The good news is that with medical advances the mortality rates for cancer have been on a continuous decline since the late 1980’s.¹

Pelvic cancers, cancers involving the structures and organs in your pelvis, continue to be the leading types of cancer in both men and women. Such cancers include but are not limited to: prostate, testicular, uterine, cervical, bladder, & colorectal cancers.

Although surviving cancer is the optimal outcome, many survivors are left with a decreased quality of life due to the adverse effects of cancer treatments (such as surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy). It is common for pelvic cancer survivors to report one or more of the following:

• Pelvic pain
• Sexual dysfunction
• Urinary issues (leaking, frequency, urgency)
• GI Irregularities (constipation, frequency, urgency, fecal incontinence)
• Fatigue
• Weakness
• Difficulties integrating back into work, home, and recreational activities

What many people – and sometimes their health care practitioners – do not realize is that their pelvic floor dysfunction can often be treated by a physiotherapist with training in Pelvic Floor Rehabilitation.

A pelvic health physiotherapist – in a one-on-one private treatment room – will review your symptoms, evaluate your pelvic floor function externally and internally (vaginal and/or rectal), and provide an individualized solution-focused approach to get you back to life. 

Surviving cancer warrants a return to a happy, fulfilled life. No survivor should have to accept a decreased quality of life as their new “normal”. Physiotherapy can help.

1. https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/chronic-diseases/cancer/...