[Shoulder-arm pain and its treatment in breast cancer diseases].

Shoulder-arm pain after mammary carcinoma conditions has four causes which must be distinguished since they require an entirely different therapy. Only one of these causes involves the condition or its progression, requiring invasive intervention. The other causes result from the treatment. The damage to nerve tissue due to irradiation has a late onset and is difficult to treat. The development of a sympathetic reflex dystrophy begins early and is simple to treat if this treatment is carried out in good time and systematically. The treatment of a false muscular posture should be based on a holist approach, i.e. besides the somatic problems, the psychological problems of women after breast amputation should be considered.