Half of the patients who get afflicted by a disease, do not believe that they get sufficient help.
It is not necessarily smoothly, to survive a cancer.
For when the cancer is removed from the body, many patients affected by late effects such as fatigue, anxiety, pain, and sensory disturbances.
A big part of the kræftoverleverne – well, half – answers in a survey from the Danish Cancer society, the lack of help from doctors and other healthcare professionals for physical and psychological late effects.
deputy permanent Secretary of the Danish Cancer society Pernille Slebsager notes that “too many” cancer patients feel alone with their responsibility in their opfølgningsforløb. Concretely it every fifth patient.
– Far more patients feel alone in the process after cancer than they do during the course of the treatment, where they constantly are in close contact with the health care system.
– When the treatment is over, are experiencing a great many cancer patients that stand alone and don’t know where to turn. In fact, they are also unsure about what symptoms they should be aware of, says Restbet Pernille Slebsager.
more specifically, consider three out of four cancer patients is not that they are dressed adequately to assess which symptoms can be signs that there is a relapse to kræftsygdommen.
3153 cancer patients participated in the study, where they assessed their contact with the healthcare system after having been in treatment for cancer.
almost 60 percent of the patients who have had cancer, have afflicted two and a half years after the diagnosis.
Pernille Slebsager points out that it is already a requirement that cancer patients have assessed their needs for rehabilitation and follow-up, before they finish their course of treatment. They must also have a plan for follow-up.
But it is very different, depending on where you live, what help there is available for the patients.
– today, there are only sporadic offers of help to the afflicted, but there should be similar deals across the country, says Pernille Slebsager.
She believes, moreover, that there should be a clearer division of labour between hospitals, municipalities and general practitioners, when it is about cancer patients efterforløb.
in addition to the lack of help shows the study from the Danish Cancer society a slight decrease in the proportion of patients who are very satisfied with their opfølgningsforløb.
In 2013 was kræftpatienternes kontrolforløb assessed as “very good” by 60 percent. Ago, that figure had dropped to 50 percent.
/ritzau/