Survive With Confidence

Although cancer is an unplanned journey, survivors usually develop a routine during treatment that includes establishing a comfortable relationship with members of their health care team. When that treatment and its routine ends, survivors often liken that transition to falling off a cliff — they're not sure what comes next and they feel lost about moving forward on their own. It is often a time of mixed emotions. Ending treatment can be cause for celebration, yet also a time of more challenges. Many questions surface — Will my cancer come back? What about the side effects of treatment? How do I get back to "normal"? Is there a new "normal"? What do I do now? How can I stay healthy? It is natural to feel excited, and to feel worried. Carolina Well and the Comprehensive Cancer Support Program will assist you with programs, services, and a survivorship care plan that will help you move forward.

What are Survivorship Care Plans?

Survivorship Care Plans help create an easier transition to life after cancer for both you and your community physician or other health care provider.

Make sure you let your health care provider, doctor or nurse know of any physical or emotional things that may be bothering you, including things that get in the way of your daily life and well-being. In addition to your medical care, at this point — like after diagnosis — is it important for you to take care of yourself, have follow up care, and know there are tools to help you move forward and positively impact the quality of your life. Ask for what you need.

LIVESTRONG CARE PLAN — An online survivorship care plan tool

The Lance Amstrong Foundation and Penn Medicine recently announced a four-year partnership to further develop and disseminate the LIVESTRONG Care Plan Powered by Penn Medicine's OncoLink. This free service gives cancer survivors, their families and physicians the ability to create an individualized plan of care using up-to-date treatment information based on Institute of Medicine recommendations, as well educating them about their options to maintain optimal health once they are out of treatment.

The LIVESTRONG Care Plan assists adults diagnosed with cancer in understanding and planning for such issues as: potential late effects of treatment; recommendations for cancer screening (recurrence or new primary); psychosocial effects (including relationships and sexuality/fertility); recommendations for a healthy lifestyle; genetic counseling (if appropriate); effective prevention options; and a list of resources made available through the LIVESTRONG cancer survivorship support services.  To begin using this new tool, go to www.LIVESTRONGCarePlan.org

 The LAF's interest in providing a state-of-the-art care plan through its Network reaches back to 2006 and the first meeting of the LIVESTRONG Survivorship Center of Excellence Network which identified the need for a care plan through which cancer survivors could document important milestones in their cancer experiences.

Journey Forward

This program offers a kit of materials for both patients and physicians, including an electronic Survivorship Care Plan Builder for the doctor and electronic Medical History Builder for patients. These materials are currently designed for survivors of breast and colon cancer but will be expanded to include other cancers in the future.