The Effect of Myofascial Release Exercises on Viscoelastic Changes of the Pectoralis Major Muscle, Pain, Range of Motion and Shoulder Functionality in Individuals Receiving Adjuvant Radiotherapy After Breast Cancer Surgery

November 22, 2025 updated by: Özlem Feyzioğlu, Acibadem University

The Effect of Myofascial Release Exercises on Viscoelastic Changes of the Pectoralis Major Muscle

Chemotherapy, hormone therapy and radiotherapy used in the treatment of breast cancer try to prevent the recurrence of cancer. In addition to the benefits of radiotherapy, such as a decrease in recurrence and an increase in long-term survival, it may have side effects that may affect the well-being and daily life activities of patients. One of the treatment modalities used to cope with treatment-related side effects is myofascial release exercises. Myofascial release exercises can help reduce adhesions caused by scar tissue and fibrosis caused by radiation. In the literature, there is no study investigating the effect of myofascial release exercises on pectoralis major muscle viscoelastic structure. For this purpose, our study aims to investigate the effect of myofascial release exercises performed in addition to home exercise programme on pectoralis major muscle viscoelastic structure, pain, range of motion and shoulder functionality.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Completed

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
30

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Contact Backup

Study Locations

  • Turkey (Türkiye)
      • Istanbul, Turkey (Türkiye)
        • SBU. Prof. Dr. Cemil Taşçıoğlu City Hospital- Oncology Clinic

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • -Stage I-II-III defined by radiation oncologists after breast cancer surgery and who will start radiotherapy
  • Breast conserving surgery or total mastectomy with axillary lymph node dissection during surgery
  • No neurological or orthopaedic problems that may limit the range of motion of the shoulder joint in the preoperative evaluations,
  • Individuals who volunteer to participate in the study will be included.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Previous breast clamp surgery on the same side or contralateral side,
  • With a metastatic cancer focus,
  • Post-surgical resistance, infection and open wound, pacemaker,
  • Patients with a Mini Mental State Examination test score of less than 21 will be excluded from the study.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: home based exercise group
home-based exercise 5 days a week
Other: Exercise
home based exercise 5 days/week
Other Names:
  • home based exercise
Other: Exercise
home based exercise plus myofacial release exercise Myofascial release exercises will continue for 6 weeks, 2 sessions per week and each session will continue for 30 minutes.All evaluations will be performed at the beginning of radiotherapy treatment and at the end of the 6th week.
Experimental: Myofascial release exercise group
home based exercise plus Myofascial release exercise
Other: Exercise
home based exercise 5 days/week
Other Names:
  • home based exercise
Other: Exercise
home based exercise plus myofacial release exercise Myofascial release exercises will continue for 6 weeks, 2 sessions per week and each session will continue for 30 minutes.All evaluations will be performed at the beginning of radiotherapy treatment and at the end of the 6th week.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Range of motion
Time Frame: 6 weeks
Shoulder range of motion will be evaluated by digital goniometer. Shoulder flexion degree, shoulder extension degree, abduction and adduction degree, internal rotation and external rotation degree will be assessed with digital goniometer. The results will be recorded in degrees.
6 weeks
Tone - pectoralis major
Time Frame: 6 weeks

Myoton® PRO (Myoton Ltd, Myoton AS, Estonia) device will be used to objectively evaluate the measurement of Pectoralis Major muscle tone of the patients who will participate in the study. Myoton® PRO is a portable digital device that measures the tone with an objective and noninvasive method.

A constant pre-pressure (0.18 N) is applied to the skin surface to compress the subcutaneous superficial tissues. The tension state of the tissue that characterized by the natural oscillation frequency; Hz.
6 weeks

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Quality of Life- Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast" (FACT-B)
Time Frame: 6 weeks
It is designed to evaluate the quality of life in breast cancer patients from multiple perspectives. Its validity and reliability have been demonstrated. It consists of 5 subscales that assess quality of life as physical condition (7 questions), social life and family status (7 questions), emotional status (6 questions), activity status (7 questions), and other breast cancer-specific concerns (9 questions). The survey has 5-point likert scoring (0=not at all, 1=a little, 2=a little, 3=quite a lot, 4=a lot) . The total score is calculated by summing the subscale scores. A higher score on the questionnaire indicates a higher quality of life
6 weeks
Pain - Visual Analogue Scale
Time Frame: 6 weeks
Visual Analogue Scale is one of the simple and common methods used in pain assessment. Self reported pain intensity during the rest and the activity measured by 0-10 centimeter chart. Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), where 0 indicates no pain or best and 10 indicates the most intense pain imaginable or worst. The patient will mark the severity of the pain on a 10 cm long chart
6 weeks
Shoulder Pain and Disability Index- SPADI
Time Frame: 6 weeks
Shoulder Pain and Disability Index: The Shoulder Pain and Disability Index (SPADI) is used to assess the pain and disability of individuals during certain activities. The SPADI is an assessment method consisting of two sub-headings, pain and functional status, which are completed in approximately 5-10 minutes. The first part consists of 5 questions to assess the level of pain during lying down, lying on the affected side and pushing activities. The second part consisting of 8 questions evaluates the functional status by questioning dressing, personal care and carrying activities. The subjects answer each question using a 10 cm Visual Analogue Scale. The answers to the questions are calculated as percentiles. The total score varies between 0-130, with the higher percentile indicating increased disability.
6 weeks

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
Acibadem University

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
December 20, 2024

Primary Completion (Actual)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
March 30, 2025

Study Completion (Actual)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
May 10, 2025

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 2, 2025

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 2, 2025

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
January 8, 2025

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
November 25, 2025

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
November 22, 2025

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
January 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • ATADEK 2024-19/733

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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