Cancer
Recently, I conducted a chat with Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University on the Effects of Chemo and Radiation on Cancer Survivors. In 1978, as a child, I was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma. I received radiation and chemotherapy at that time that resulted in my development of significant late side effects in my adult life.
The participants asked some great questions. One particular question we did not have time to answer was,
“Did you find a survivorship care plan an effective tool for you or your parents once you moved from active treatment?”
For me, a cancer treatment summary or a survivorship care plan was extremely helpful after my active treatment. Without the knowledge from my parents and their guidance, I would not have been able to properly prepare a care plan.
I recommend that every cancer survivor become well informed and secure a treatment summary and survivorship care plan. Consider it the first step in accepting responsibility for your personal health and well-being after cancer treatment.
A Cancer Treatment Summary should include the following information at a minimum:
- Identifiers for you (name, medical record number and birthdate)
- A description of your cancer diagnosis including pathology and staging information
- A list of all treatments you have received (surgery, chemotherapy, biological therapy, hormonal therapy, and/or radiation therapy)
- All dates and doses of treatment you received (i.e. cumulative doses of anthracyclines)
- Any significant side effects you experienced during treatment
- Contact name and phone number of a member of your family or close friend
- Names and Contact information of all providers involved in your care
A Survivorship Care Plan should include the following information at a minimum:
- A Treatment Summary
- A plan for long term follow-up including appointments and testing you will need and when you should have them
- A list of any long term side effects that you need to be aware of and ways to handle them (including physical issues as well as emotional and social issues you may experience)
For more information on how to prepare your survivorship plan and the benefits of having one, check out the chat transcript.
About Stephanie Zimmerman
Stephanie’s personal experience as a child diagnosed and treated for Ewing’s Sarcoma in the late 1970’s led her to become a nurse serving the physical and psychosocial needs of children and their families along the cancer trajectory. In April 2008, Stephanie’s heart failed because of the chest radiation and Doxorubicin used to cure her Ewing’s Sarcoma three decades prior. Unable to return to clinical practice following a heart transplant, yet unwilling to abandon her passion for the survivor population, Stephanie partnered with Judy Bode of Grand Rapids, MI in the founding of myHeart, yourHands, Inc. [MHYH]
Related Resources
- Effects of Chemo and Radiation Chat Transcript
- My Heart Your Hands, Inc. Non-Profit
- Winship Cancer Institute
- American Cancer Society
- National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship Survivors, Caregivers and Advocates
- Living Beyond Cancer
- Cancer Survivors Network Wellness Community
- Livestrong Life After Cancer Survivorship
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