Definition: The lymphatic system helps drain or circulate fluid from different parts of your body. When the lymphatic circulation system is blocked by disease or cancer, damaged or partly removed by surgery, swelling in that area of the body can occur. After ovarian cancer treatment, if many lymph nodes are removed or if the cancer is growing in the remaining lymph nodes, the legs may become swollen. This is unusual but can occur. It is important to determine if the swelling is due to lymphedema or due to a clot deep in your leg veins, which is treated very differently.
Pronunciation: limf-eh-deema
Examples: Initially the swelling was thought to be related to lymphedema because of ovarian cancer in her pelvic lymph nodes. However, a special ultrasound scan showed that the swelling was due to a blood clot which required emergency treatment with blood thinners.
