Holistically Defining Cancer Survivorship

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EP: 1.Holistically Defining Cancer Survivorship

EP: 2.Seeing Cancer as a Chronic Illness

EP: 3.Challenges Facing Cancer Survivors

EP: 4.The Role of Support in Cancer Survivorship

EP: 5.Working With Underserved Populations of Cancer Survivors

EP: 6.Supporting Cancer Survivors: The Clinician's Role

Cancer survivorship is a complex concept that can be defined in various ways, depending on the context and perspective. Some common approaches include time-based definitions, state-based definitions like "living with cancer" or "cancer-free," or quality-of-life-focused definitions.

More holistic definitions can identify cancer survivorship as a journey, with a perspective that recognizes that survivorship is a continuous process involving physical, emotional, and psychological challenges. Survivorship can also be thought of as a community, emphasizing the importance of support networks and shared experiences among cancer patients.

These definitions are not mutually exclusive and can be used in combination to provide a more comprehensive understanding of cancer survivorship. The specific definition that is most appropriate will depend on the research question, clinical context, and individual perspective.

Here, Amy Selly, CNP, AOCNP, Allina Health medical oncology advanced practice provider lead, discusses the different definitions of survivorship.

Transcription:

0:05 | People have so many different view lenses on what defines survivorship. I think the the most general, or most agreed upon, is that survivorship really starts at the time of diagnosis, and it continues through end of life. So as we're talking to patients, I hear a lot that they feel like they're not a survivor until they have been told by their cancer team that they are in remission. And so really that survivorship should start, you know, that that clock starts ticking at the time of diagnosis.

0:45 | And really, when you're looking at survivorship as as a whole, we're really looking at everything that is impacting that patient, from the the physical to the mental to the emotional, you know, the social, the financial effects, and everything that goes into what goes with that cancer diagnosis. So we don't want to pigeonhole it into one particular time, right? I know that for a lot of us, when we define survivorship programs, a lot of it does start at completion of treatment, and where we really start to provide patients with that long-term follow-up plan and what they need to be watching for and identifying some of those longer-term resources.