'Beyond Cancer' Rehabilitation Program to Support Breast Cancer Survivors to Return to Health, Wellness and Work: Feasibility Study Outcomes
Journal Title
Current Oncology
Publication Type
Research article
Abstract
More women are returning to work following breast cancer treatment. Our team designed 'Beyond Cancer', a multimodal rehabilitation program to support breast cancer survivors to return to work. This study aimed to determine the feasibility of the intervention from the breast cancer survivor, employer and occupational rehabilitation provider perspectives. The feasibility design focused on implementation, acceptability and preliminary indications of efficacy. Primary outcome measures included work status, work capacity and perceived support at work. Responses were compared with an historical usual care group of mixed cancer survivors. The tailored intervention was delivered over 33 weeks (on average) by trained occupational rehabilitation consultants. Eighty-four women with breast cancer (mean age = 50.8 years, SD = 8.24) who were unable to work in their pre-diagnosis capacity for >3 months participated. Results provided preliminary indications of efficacy for primary work outcomes, including work capacity relative to the historical usual care group, and some secondary biopsychosocial variables (physical fatigue, return to work expectations). The intervention was acceptable, demonstrated strong participant engagement and high satisfaction. Feasibility has been demonstrated for this multimodal intervention focused on returning to sustainable work for women with breast cancer. Future research is required with people diagnosed with other cancer types to demonstrate broader implementation.
Publisher
MDPI
Keywords
Humans; Female; Middle Aged; *Breast Neoplasms/psychology; *Cancer Survivors/psychology; Feasibility Studies; Fatigue; Research Design
Department(s)
Health Services Research; Australian Cancer Survivorship Centre
PubMed ID
36826135
Open Access at Publisher's Site
https://doi.org/10.3390/curroncol30020174
Terms of Use/Rights Notice
Refer to copyright notice on published article.


Creation Date: 2023-06-13 07:55:29
Last Modified: 2023-06-13 07:56:08

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