In New Zealand, the number of people diagnosed with cancer has been growing, but deaths caused by cancer have been steadily decreasing.
Some cancers that were once uniformly fatal can now cured and around 50% of people diagnosed with cancer become long-term cancer survivors. The major forms of cancer treatment – surgery, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, and radiotherapy – have saved many lives, but these treatments can have unwelcome long-term effects.
Even when cancer has been eliminated, many survivors have persistent problems, such as fatigue, anxiety about cancer recurrence, sexual difficulties, loss of bone density, balance difficulties, trouble concentrating and other symptoms. Some cancer survivors also report financial and workplace difficulties as a result of their cancer experiences.
The medical profession now recognises that equipping cancer survivors with the knowledge and support to enjoy a good quality of life after successful treatment is just as important as the treatment itself.
But first is necessary to know what the main issues are and when they occur in the period after patients are given the all clear.
A study of issues faced by cancer survivors in New Zealand was funded by the Cancer Research Trust. This “Life After Cancer Study” provided an understanding of the issues faced by cancer survivors from the viewpoints of the survivors themselves. Cancer survivors answered a written questionnaire developed by an interdisciplinary research team at the University of Auckland and the University of Otago in conjunction with cancer specialists from Auckland Hospital. The questionnaire addressed many issues commonly reported by cancer survivors in other countries.
Dr Jill Bennett, leader of the research team, said that finding cancer survivors in New Zealand was a significant challenge of the study, as there is no central registry that follows survivors after they complete cancer treatment.
“When we talked about the study with cancer survivors, there seemed to be great enthusiasm for the idea of answering questions about their experiences with cancer. Most survivors felt they changed in many ways after they were diagnosed with cancer and were keen to share their experiences in the hope of helping other survivors.”
836 adult survivors of cancer were recruited, many through the Trust newsletter and the questionnaire covered physical and emotional health, depression, symptoms, cognitive difficulty and social concerns. Survivors were divided into groups – less than 5 years, 5 to 10 years and greater to ten years after discharge. When the data were analysed the good news was that most survivors enjoyed a moderately good quality of life and health. However, some adverse effects were similar across the short, long term and very long-term survivor groups, in particular physical pain, sleep problems and depression.
The knowledge that survivorship issues can persist long after successful treatment was an important first step in understanding the survivorship part of the cancer continuum and these days’ patients are encouraged to seek psychological or medical help regardless of the time after a successful treatment outcome.
So, if you are a cancer survivor experiencing health or psychological difficulties it’s a good idea to talk to your healthcare provider or support group about putting a survivorship plan in place.
