Currently in the US, there are an estimated 12 million cancer survivors. Over 65 percent of adults diagnosed with cancer will survive beyond the five year mark. Wonderful news, and cancer survivors are grateful for the medical advances that allow for long term cancer survivorship.
However, there is often a silent resignation of suffering intertwined in the joy of living as a cancer survivor.
Northwestern Medicine researchers, who conducted the largest study concerning issues cancer survivors face after treatment, were surprised to learn cancer-free cancer survivors are left to suffer moderate to severe pain when there are medically effective means to manage pain.
"It is acceptable for someone actively going through cancer treatment to have pain medications, but when they transition to being survivors, that acceptance goes away", explains Wagner. "If they ask for pain medication again, doctors may worry that they are getting addicted".
In addition to offering effective pain management, is the greater need for educational resources, advocacy and intervention for cancer survivors coping with the persistent problems of pain, insomnia, fatigue and brain fog after cancer treatment ends.
"We were surprised to see how prevalent these symptoms still are," states Lynne Wagner, an associate professor of medical social sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a clinical health psychologist at the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center of Northwestern University. "This is one of the first looks at what's really happening for survivors in terms of symptoms and treatment among community based treatment settings across the US".
Source: Northwestern University News
