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Sustained employability of cancer patients and survivors: are we getting any closer?
Author(s) -
Duijts Saskia
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
european journal of cancer care
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.849
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1365-2354
pISSN - 0961-5423
DOI - 10.1111/ecc.12759
Subject(s) - medicine , employability , cancer , breast cancer , gerontology , demography , economic growth , economics , sociology
Worldwide, about 40%–50% of all newly diagnosed cancer patients are of working age when their diagnosis is made (De Boer, 2014; Ferlay et al., 2013). Because of developments in cancer screening and treatment, but also because of the increase in the retirement age in several countries, it is expected that this percentage will increase in the near future. Consequences of not being able to work do not only have an enormous impact on survivors, but also on the wider society. That is, for the individual, work provides a range of benefits, including a sense of normalcy and identity, and it facilitates social relationships and financial security. On a broader scale, it is an economic imperative to sustain survivors’ employability (Barofsky, 1989; Disler & Pallant, 2001; Hakkaart‐Van Roijen, 1998).