NCI Health Information Tip Sheet for Writers:
Cancer Survivorship
|
Hollywood, Health & Society is
a project at the University of Southern California Annenberg School of Communications, that
in association with NCI, provides entertainment industry professionals with accurate and timely
information for health storylines.
To contact Hollywood, Health & Society, phone (800) 283-0676, or e-mail
hhs@usc.edu.
|
TOPIC: Cancer Survivorship
WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?
Over the past twenty years, major advances have been made in various aspects of cancer research. This progress has lead to improved diagnosis and screening techniques and better treatment for many types of cancer. As a result, many more people are surviving and living longer with cancer. In 2001, the number of people in the United States living with cancer reached nearly 10 million. This was up from 3 million in 1971. Sixty-four percent of adults diagnosed with cancer today will be alive five years after their diagnosis, and nearly 75 percent of those who had childhood cancer will be alive after 10 years.
While this is exciting progress, increased survivorship has introduced a number of challenges to cancer survivors and their families. These challenges may include a lack of information regarding follow-up care, complications related to insurance and future insurability, employment and financial concerns. Because health insurance is tied to employment, many survivors who lose their coverage end up with large amounts of debt. Additionally, survivors often face a wide array of physiological and psychological issues associated with the disease and its treatment.
In a response to this growing need, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) established the Office of Survivorship in 1996 to address these problems. By conducting extensive research, the NCI and its partners hope to explore all aspects of survivorship and improve quality of life for people living beyond cancer.
WHO IS AT RISK?
Anyone diagnosed with cancer potentially faces issues related to life after treatment. Most importantly, the age at which a person is diagnosed seems to define what difficulties will be faced in the post-treatment period. Three major groups have been identified: those diagnosed as children, adults and older adults. Each group is confronted with a unique set of issues. For instance, diagnosis during childhood or adolescence often results in difficulties surrounding re-entry into the educational system, social development, psychological issues and problems coordinating the appropriate transition from pediatric to adult health care settings. Those diagnosed as adults may face significant challenges related to employment and insurability. Those diagnosed as older adults often lack adequate social and caregiver support and often have to deal with other health problems such as diabetes and heart disease.
Such challenges are often magnified for cancer survivors from disadvantaged and/or minority communities. Concerns around access to care, financial matters and cultural and language barriers place an even larger burden on these individuals.
CAN IT BE PREVENTED?
By gaining a better understanding of the issues facing cancer survivors, researchers can continue to enhance efforts to improve the lives of cancer survivors. Providing survivors with more complete medical records and detailed information about their diagnosis and treatment can help to improve follow-up care and help resolve a number of related issues. Greater attention to common concerns within the survivorship community may also help to bring about positive changes, including reforms in insurance coverage for survivors and legal reforms ensuring better protections and resources for survivors and their caregivers.
Continued research can play a large role in the development of improved treatment and reduction of side effects. For example, highly targeted therapies, which attack cancer cells while preserving healthy tissues, are less toxic than standard chemotherapy. This may increase the time an individual is able to survive with fewer complications. Similarly, the introduction of new drugs (such as those that prevent the anemia which is often a complication of chemotherapy) can reduce the long-term side effects of treatment and improve quality of life.
THE BOTTOM LINE
- Improved detection and treatment are allowing more and more people to survive cancer.
- A number of issues face survivors in their life after treatment, including:
- Insurance
- Employment
- Access to follow-up care and treatment
- Social support
- Physiological and psychological issues
- Availability of cancer-related education and information
- Understanding the hardships faced by those surviving cancer can help bring about reform and institutional change that can improve the quality of life for survivors and their loved ones.
CASE EXAMPLES
Taylor is a ten-year-old cancer survivor. Diagnosed with leukemia at the age of seven, he underwent chemotherapy and radiation and has been cancer-free for 15 months. He and his family struggled with all of the issues related to his treatment but now confront a new set of difficulties. Taylor’s re-entry into school has proven to be difficult, both socially and academically. His body weakened from treatment, Taylor is shy about participating in physical education classes and isolates himself from other students at recess. Worried about him, two of his friends team up with their teacher to devise activities that Taylor enjoys and that encourage his involvement in the classroom. By working together, Taylor’s teachers, friends and parents help to make his recovery and re-entry process smoother.
Elizabeth, a 45-year-old single mother of two, was recently told by her doctor that she was free from breast cancer. Having battled the disease for three years, she now focuses on rebuilding her life. Facing a number of concerns -- from employability and insurance coverage to finding appropriate follow-up care -- Elizabeth becomes involved in a breast cancer survivor support group at the hospital where she received treatment. Here she realizes that she is not alone and is able to share experiences and information with other survivors. She hears about new exercises to combat the weight gain associated with her treatment and new ways to style her hair, thinned by chemotherapy. Through the support group, Elizabeth begins to feel more comfortable and confident in her ability to move beyond cancer.
FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Cancer Information Service
1-800-4-CANCER
www.cancer.gov
###
Back to Top |
