Treating Pelvic Cancer Patients: An Interview with Allison Ariail

Allison Ariail is one of the creators of the Herman & Wallace Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Course Series. Practitioners who took the main Pelvic Floor course still weren’t sure how to handle oncology tissues, what they could do, or how to treat these patients. Thus the oncology series was created to provide additional instruction for treating pelvic cancer patients.

Allison Ariail is a physical therapist who started working in oncology in 2007 when she became certified as a lymphatic therapist. She worked with breast cancer, lymphedema patients, head and neck cancer patients, and the overall oncology team to work with the whole patient to help them get better. When writing these courses, Allison was part of a knowledgeable team that included Amy Sides, Nicole Dugan, Tina Allen, Jennafer Vande Vegte, and Megan Pribyl.

The Oncology Series is comprised of three different courses, with the first course, Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Level 1, designed as an overview of the oncology world. Allison explains that the reason level 1 is an introduction is that “this is because the oncology medical world is so different from what a lot of rehab professionals are used to.”

Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Level 2A addresses colorectal cancers, anal cancers, and cancers that affect male genitalia. New information about how to treat prostate cancers is also discussed. The third course, Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Level 2B, is being launched this year in 2022 and covers gynecological cancers and bladder cancers. The tentative launch will be in November 2022.

There are a lot of labs in all of these courses that are specific to the side effects that these patients have after going through radiation and other surgical treatments. Oncology patients can have a range of problems from radiation fibrosis, range of motion issues, and weakness. While these patients may be seeing a certified lymphatic therapist, that CLT is not going to have time to address these additional issues. Allison Ariail explains, “that is where this knowledge from these courses comes in. Not just as a supplement for that patient, but as a completely different treatment, where that patient really needs to see both therapists. One for lymphedema and one for radiation fibrosis, or weakness, or other side effects, that can affect their quality of life.”

Certified Lymphatic Therapists can skip OPF1 or dive in at OPF2A or OPF2B as long as they have taken the main Pelvic Floor Level 1 course prior.

Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Series 2022 Schedule

Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Level 1

• January 29-30
• July 16-17
• December 3-4

Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Level 2A

• April 2-3
• August 20-21

Oncology of the Pelvic Floor Level 2B

• TBD – course launch is tentatively scheduled for November 2022
• If you are interested in attending this course, please contact us!