Online Support Group for Prostate Cancer Survivors
Online Support Group for Prostate Cancer Survivors
As the most common form of cancer for men in the United States (U.S.), it is estimated that about one in 36 will die of prostate cancer, with the lifetime risk calculated as one in six (American Cancer Society, 2012a). The cost burden of prostate cancer is increasing due to newer methods of treatment and increased survival rates and lengths. Mariotto, Yabroff, Shao, Feuer, and Brown (2011) estimated that in 2010, total cost of cancer care was $124.57 billion; $11.85 billion was related to prostate cancer care. Mariotto and associates (2011) estimate that by 2020, the largest percentage increase in cancer care costs would be for prostate cancer.
The American Cancer Society (2012a) reports that in the last 25 years, the 5-year survival rate for prostate cancer has risen from 68% to nearly 100%, and the 15-year survival is at 91%. With longer survival, individuals with prostate cancer live long enough to encounter problems and challenges residual from the cancer and any treatment. The National Cancer Institute (2012) reported that many patients with cancer receive plenty of information while in treatment, but once treatment was completed, the post-treatment world also contains questions, anxieties, and frustrations related to their disease and/or treatment.
Results from a qualitative study (Berterö, 2001), which obtained data from 10 prostate cancer survivors, concluded that these individuals faced challenges when rebuilding their lives while struggling with conflicting emotions, including anxiety, fear, hope, and sadness. The primary concern of prostate cancer survivors was about what can be done to improve their quality of life. Nanton, Docherty, Meystre, and Dale (2009) performed a qualitative study among 58 individuals diagnosed with prostate cancer (36 individuals in 7 focus groups and another 22 individuals in one-on-one interviews). These results identified uncertainty as a major issue, with the authors recommending that health care professionals address this need. Faced with an increasing number of prostate cancer survivors, health care professionals and researchers must focus their attention on the challenge of how to provide care to these individuals during diagnosis and treatment, as well as in the longterm. This care should not only be appropriate and respectful, but it must maintain dignity, self-image, and respect. Support groups may be one pathway this can be done.
The Challenge of Prostate Cancer
As the most common form of cancer for men in the United States (U.S.), it is estimated that about one in 36 will die of prostate cancer, with the lifetime risk calculated as one in six (American Cancer Society, 2012a). The cost burden of prostate cancer is increasing due to newer methods of treatment and increased survival rates and lengths. Mariotto, Yabroff, Shao, Feuer, and Brown (2011) estimated that in 2010, total cost of cancer care was $124.57 billion; $11.85 billion was related to prostate cancer care. Mariotto and associates (2011) estimate that by 2020, the largest percentage increase in cancer care costs would be for prostate cancer.
The American Cancer Society (2012a) reports that in the last 25 years, the 5-year survival rate for prostate cancer has risen from 68% to nearly 100%, and the 15-year survival is at 91%. With longer survival, individuals with prostate cancer live long enough to encounter problems and challenges residual from the cancer and any treatment. The National Cancer Institute (2012) reported that many patients with cancer receive plenty of information while in treatment, but once treatment was completed, the post-treatment world also contains questions, anxieties, and frustrations related to their disease and/or treatment.
Results from a qualitative study (Berterö, 2001), which obtained data from 10 prostate cancer survivors, concluded that these individuals faced challenges when rebuilding their lives while struggling with conflicting emotions, including anxiety, fear, hope, and sadness. The primary concern of prostate cancer survivors was about what can be done to improve their quality of life. Nanton, Docherty, Meystre, and Dale (2009) performed a qualitative study among 58 individuals diagnosed with prostate cancer (36 individuals in 7 focus groups and another 22 individuals in one-on-one interviews). These results identified uncertainty as a major issue, with the authors recommending that health care professionals address this need. Faced with an increasing number of prostate cancer survivors, health care professionals and researchers must focus their attention on the challenge of how to provide care to these individuals during diagnosis and treatment, as well as in the longterm. This care should not only be appropriate and respectful, but it must maintain dignity, self-image, and respect. Support groups may be one pathway this can be done.
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