Questions Survivors Should Ask their Doctor
Drawn from From Cancer Patient to Cancer Survivor: Lost in Transition, 2006
Institute of Medicine
There are currently 10 million Americans who are considered cancer survivors, and their ranks are growing rapidly as more than a million new cases of cancer are diagnosed each year. Unfortunately, the current U.S. health care system is failing to deliver the comprehensive and coordinated follow-up care cancer survivors deserve. Too many survivors are lost in transition once they finish treatment. They move from an orderly system of care to a “non-system” in which there are few guidelines to assist them through the next stage of their life or help them overcome the medical and psychosocial problems that may arise.
Questions Survivors Should Ask
Like most patients, cancer survivors want to be empowered to take care of themselves and remain healthy. Once cancer treatment ends, there are some questions every patient should be asking their doctor to be informed about their care and to know what they can expect next. These include, but are not limited to the following:
- What treatments and drugs have I been given?
- Do I need to seek follow-up care?
- Will I get cancer again?
- What should I do to maintain my health and well-being?
- Even though I survived cancer, will I feel differently physically?
- Will I have trouble getting health insurance or keeping a job because of my cancer?
- Are there support groups I can turn to?
- Now that I’ve finished treatment, who on the cancer team will be responsible for monitoring my care?
OncoLink has developed a "survivorship care plan" for survivors of adult cancer detailing the medical consequences a survivor may face once treatment is complete. This document is individualized based on the answers the cancer survivor provides in a brief questionnaire. For more information and to complete the questionnaire see the OncoLife Survivorship Care Plan.
