Keith M. Bellizzi

Health behaviors of cancer survivors: examining opportunities for cancer control intervention.

PURPOSE A population-based investigation was conducted to examine the prevalence of health behaviors (smoking, alcohol use, physical activity, and cancer screening) of cancer survivors by age, time since diagnosis, and cancer site. Understanding health behaviors of survivors is imperative, as many survivors are living longer and are at risk for cancer recurrence, second cancers, and complications from treatment. METHODS Using the National Health Interview Survey, this study examined the prevalence of smoking and alcohol use as well as whether cancer survivors (n = 7,384) are meeting current recommendations for physical activity and cancer screening compared with noncancer controls (n = 121,347). RESULTS Cancer survivors are similar to controls with respect to smoking status and alcohol consumption after adjusting for group differences. However, younger survivors (18 to 40 years) are at greater risk for continued smoking than controls. Survivors are 9% more likely to meet physical activity recommendations compared with controls. chi2 tests indicate no significant differences in smoking, alcohol consumption, and physical activity by time since diagnosis, but differences by cancer site exist. Female cancer survivors are 34% and 36% more likely to meet mammogram and Papanicolaou smear screening recommendations, respectively, compared with controls. Similar screening patterns were found for prostate-specific antigen screening in men. CONCLUSION This study provides benchmark approximations of the prevalence of risky health behaviors of survivors by time since diagnosis and cancer site. As part of the collective effort to reduce late effects of cancer treatment, oncologists may be in the best position to offer initial guidance for promoting healthy lifestyle behaviors among cancer survivors.

Positive and negative psychosocial impact of being diagnosed with cancer as an adolescent or young adult

The objective of this study was to explore the psychosocial impact of cancer on newly diagnosed adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients.

Health-Related Quality of Life of Adolescent and Young Adult Patients With Cancer in the United States: The Adolescent and Young Adult Health Outcomes and Patient Experience Study

PURPOSE Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) diagnosed with cancer face numerous physical, psychosocial, and practical challenges. This article describes the health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and associated demographic and health-related characteristics of this developmentally diverse population. PATIENTS AND METHODS Data are from the Adolescent and Young Adult Health Outcomes and Patient Experience (AYA HOPE) study, a population-based cohort of 523 AYA patients with cancer, ages 15 to 39 years at diagnosis from 2007 to 2009. Comparisons are made by age group and with general and healthy populations. Multiple linear regression models evaluated effects of demographic, disease, health care, and symptom variables on multiple domains of HRQOL using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) and the Short-Form Health Survey 12 (SF-12). RESULTS Overall, respondents reported significantly worse HRQOL across both physical and mental health scales than did general and healthy populations. The greatest deficits were in limitations to physical and emotional roles, physical and social functioning, and fatigue. Teenaged patients (ages 15 to 17 years) reported worse physical and work/school functioning than patients 18 to 25 years old. Regression models showed that HRQOL was worse for those in treatment, with current/recent symptoms, or lacking health insurance at any time since diagnosis. In addition, sarcoma patients, Hispanic patients, and those with high school or lower education reported worse physical health. Unmarried patients reported worse mental health. CONCLUSION Results suggest that AYAs with cancer have major decrements in several physical and mental HRQOL domains. Vulnerable subgroups included Hispanic patients, those with less education, and those without health insurance. AYAs also experienced higher levels of fatigue that were influenced by current symptoms and treatment. Future research should explore ways to address poor functioning in this understudied group.

Expressions of Generativity and Posttraumatic Growth in Adult Cancer Survivors

Much of the psycho-oncology research that has been conducted to date has focused on understanding the negative psychological and psychosocial sequelae of cancer. However, a growing body of evidence suggests that many cancer survivors report psychological growth following a diagnosis of cancer. Further, there are few studies that examine the relationship among age, cancer, and posttraumatic growth. This study examines relationships among posttraumatic growth, generativity, age, and gender. Questionnaires were mailed to 400 randomly-selected cancer survivors from a metropolitan hospital tumor registry, with a yield of 21%. Three age cohorts were examined (26–41 years, 42–54 years, and 55-plus years). As anticipated, MANOVA showed no significant age differences in expression of generative concern among the three cohorts, but there was evidence that younger adults engage in a greater number of generative behaviors than older adults. Further, females reported more positive growth on four out of the five domains of the measure of posttraumatic growth compared to males, and the oldest cohort experienced lower levels of positive growth compared with the other two groups. Generative concern was positively correlated with the total posttraumatic growth score. Implications for theoretical and applied research on generativity and posttraumatic growth in adult cancer survivors are discussed.

Forgoing medical care because of cost: assessing disparities in healthcare access among cancer survivors living in the United States.

Many US cancer survivors live years after diagnosis, which emphasizes the importance of healthcare access for survivors. It is not known whether having cancer has an impact on disparities in healthcare access that are present in the general population. The objective of this study was to examine the prevalence of forgoing care because of financial concerns in a representative sample of US adults to determine whether cancer history and race/ethnicity are associated with the likelihood of forgoing medical care.

Posttraumatic growth and health-related quality of life in a racially diverse cohort of breast cancer survivors.

This study examined the relationship between race, religiosity, and posttraumatic growth as well as the association between growth and physical and mental health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in breast cancer survivors (N = 802; M age = 57.2). Multivariate analyses revealed that African American breast cancer survivors reported higher levels of posttraumatic growth than White women. However, this relationship was mediated by religiosity. We found an inverse association with growth and mental HRQOL which might be explained by the fact that growth co-occurs with distress and perhaps women in this sample are still struggling with their disease.

Health information needs and health-related quality of life in a diverse population of long-term cancer survivors

OBJECTIVE To investigate health information needs and their association with health-related quality of life (HRQOL) in a diverse, population-based sample of long-term cancer survivors. METHODS We analyzed health information needs from 1197 cancer survivors 4-14 years post-diagnosis drawn from two cancer registries in California. Multivariable regression models were used to identify factors associated with endorsement of total number and different categories of needs. The relationship between number of needs and HRQOL and effect modification by confidence for obtaining information was examined. RESULTS Survivors reported a high prevalence of unmet information needs in the following categories: side effects & symptoms: 75.8%; tests & treatment: 71.5%; health promotion: 64.5%; interpersonal & emotional: 60.2%; insurance: 39.0%; and sexual functioning & fertility: 34.6%. Survivors who were younger, non-White, and did not receive but wanted a written treatment summary reported a higher number of needs. Number of information needs was inversely related to mental well-being, particularly for those with low confidence for obtaining information (P<0.05). CONCLUSION These patterns suggest disparities in access to important health information in long-term survivors and that affect HRQOL. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS Findings suggest a need for tailored interventions to equip survivors with comprehensive health information and to bolster skills for obtaining information.

The relationship of coping strategies, social support, and attachment style with posttraumatic growth in cancer survivors:

This cross-sectional study investigated attachment style, coping strategies, social support, and posttraumatic growth (PTG) in 54 cancer survivors. Secure attachment was significantly associated with active coping, positive reframing, and religion, and these were all associated with PTG. Insecure types of attachment and social support variables were unrelated to PTG. Regression analysis suggests that positive reframing and religion as coping strategies may mediate the relationship between secure attachment and PTG.

Cancer Survivorship Issues: Life After Treatment and Implications for an Aging Population

The US population of cancer survivors age ≥ 65 years will continue to grow rapidly over the next few decades. This growth will be driven largely by the aging of the national population. With the diffusion of earlier detection and more effective therapies, the majority of these individuals can expect to live long term after diagnosis. This often vulnerable group of survivors poses significant challenges for both researchers and clinicians with regard to how best to document and address its unique health care needs. In this article, we briefly review the long-term and late-occurring effects of cancer and its treatment in older survivors, review information on current patterns of post-treatment care and the evolving guidelines for this care, and discuss opportunities for future research.

Cancer Survivors and Survivorship Research: A Reflection on Today's Successes and Tomorrow's Challenges

As advances in cancer medicine turn this once uniformly fatal illness into a curable disease for growing numbers and a chronic illness for many, understanding and meeting the needs of long-term cancer survivors and their caregivers has become a major public health challenge, a challenge made more urgent by the aging of the population. This article reviews the profile of todays cancer survivors along with the demographic information on what this profile might look like in the future. Current directions in and the knowledge gained from the growing body of cancer survivorship research and the science of the long-term and late consequences to individuals, families, and society of people living longer with a cancer history are delineated.