Eight important updates for National Cancer Survivor Month

June is National Cancer Survivor Month.

An estimated 16.9 million cancer survivors live in the United States, and that number is projected to exceed 22 million by 2030.

In conjunction with this observance, HemOnc Today presents eight important updates in cancer survivorship.

1. About one in three cancer survivors in the United States reports experiencing chronic pain, and one in six survivors endures high-impact chronic pain that limits life or work activities. Read more.

2. Adolescent and young adult cancer survivors have a significantly higher rate of mortality from noncancer causes than the general population. This appears especially true when it comes to long-term mortality related to infectious diseases. Read more.

3. A personalized, risk-stratified approach to follow-up care could better meet the needs of cancer survivors while helping to control costs for the U.S. health care system, according to a commentary published in Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Read more.

4. Three large populations of older cancer survivors demonstrated varying degrees of chronic opioid use, with colorectal and lung cancer survivors showing higher rates of chronic use 1 year after diagnosis than matched controls without cancer. Read more.

5. One-third of U.S. survey respondents with a history of cancer reported using complementary and alternative medicines in addition to or instead of conventional treatment. Nearly one-third of these individuals did not disclose their use of complementary and alternative medicines to their physicians. Read more.

6. An estimated 40% to 50% of childhood cancer survivors will experience an endocrine disorder in their lifetime. In this cover story, HemOnc Today spoke with pediatric oncologists and endocrinologists about guideline recommendations to surveil patients and manage these conditions; which treatments and diseases put patients at risk; and whether educating patients, physicians and parents can mitigate the long-term consequences of cancer treatment. Read more.

7. Cancer survivors carry greater financial burdens related to medical bills and debt payments than individuals who never had cancer. Younger cancer survivors appeared particularly vulnerable to financial hardship, as did individuals with private insurance who were enrolled in high-deductible plans and did not have health savings accounts. Read more.

8. The NIH awarded a 5-year, $693,000 grant to The Feinstein Institute for Medical Research to develop and test a digital health platform to help young female cancer survivors evaluate their options for having children and plan for the future. Read more.