EVERYDAY JOY

PHOTOGRAPHY BY NANCY FIELDS / BIG DREAMZ CREATIVE

Surviving cancer is a major victory, but the fight doesn’t stop there. It’s key to create a cancer survivorship care plan to put in place after treatment is over. And today, it is more important than ever. The number of people who have had cancer has gone up greatly over the last 45 years in the United States. With this increase, having a care plan plays an even larger role than before. Patients tend to have less contact with their health care team. Therefore, treating life after cancer as a chronic disease and developing a plan to manage it is the best way to help the patient and caretakers continue to live well and receive the best quality health care.

Survivors often experience a mix of emotions that include relief of treatment, uncertainty about the future, increased anxiety, fear of cancer recurrence, and survivor’s guilt amongst other things. Once active treatment is over, patients may need help adjusting to a new normal and caretakers can help them on that journey.

SO, WHAT’S THE PLAN? • A survivorship care plan is a record of your cancer diagnosis and treatment history, as well as any checkups or follow-up tests you need in the future.

• It may also list possible long-term effects of your treatments and ideas for staying healthy.

• It should include your health-care providers’ contact information, and specific recommendations for on-going care.

• It should include financial planning information and resources.

• The plan should provide clear designation of provider responsibilities to include both oncology and nononcology in order to optimize care coordination, avoid unnecessary use of resources and ensure that care does not go unattended.

• The plan should include a listing of cancer-related resources.

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Check out joytolife.org for support and resources.

The Alabama Department of Public Health has a wealth of information and resources available to help cancer patients make their personal plan, but here are a few key considerations:

ASK YOURSELF:

Have you spoken to your doctor about what to expect after your treatment is done?

Do you have a record of your cancer treatment?

Do you keep in contact with your healthcare team?

Have you asked your doctor about any unanswered questions you may have?

Do you have a support system?

Are you aware of all available resources in your area?

Do you think you are the healthiest you could be?

If you answered “no” to any of these questions, talk to your provider about planning your on-going care.

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