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Psychological, physical impairments typical after cancer diagnosis
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Patients with cancer may be at risk for non-cancer-related physical and mental impairments after their diagnosis, according to a recent review.
"The current literature suggests that a leading cause of distress in cancer survivors is physical disability; therefore, a critical initial step in decreasing unnecessary disability and suffering in this population is to have clinicians perform dual screening for physical and psychological problems," study researcher Julie Silver, MD, associate professor at Harvard Medical School, said in an interview.
Julie Silver
The review explores data pertaining to the overall health of patients with cancer after their diagnosis. Clinicians observed that approximately two of three patients with cancer live at least 5 years after diagnosis. The American Cancer Society estimated that the number of cancer survivors in the United States will increase from 13.6 million to 18 million by 2022. The current study reports that of this growing group, one in four cancer survivors report poor physical health vs. the one in 10 reporting the same but without a history of cancer.
In addition, the study reports that 10% of adults with a cancer diagnosis have poor mental health vs. the 6% of adults without cancer. The researchers said the patients' poor mental health could be a result of mental distress stemming from declining physical health, adding that “prehabilitation” may be a key in treating these impairments in cancer survivors. By improving mental and physical health from the time of diagnosis to the start of treatment, patients can tolerate treatment more effectively and emerge with fewer problems.
“As impairment-driven cancer rehabilitation can significantly improve physical and psychological health outcomes in survivors as well as reduce direct and indirect health care costs, future research efforts should be focused on building on the current evidence in order to provide quality integration of this care into oncology practice,” the researchers concluded.
Disclosure: Silver reports no relevant financial disclosures.
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