Did you continue working after diagnosis?
Working With Cancer has initiated a survey “Living and Working With Cancer Study”.which could help those of us who think that life should go on even if we have cancer.
Some of us have to continue working during and after treatment. Without work coming in we would find it difficult to feed ourselves, etc. For many, work provides the mental stimulus that keeps our brains alive.
In 2003, Isabel van der Wen was diagnosed with and treated for breast cancer,
which marked a major learning moment in her life. This is when she discovered the power of coaching that helped her reassess her life and find a new life balance.In 2009 she founded LYLAC™: Live Your Life After Cancer, offering coaching and (virtual) workshops to people impacted by cancer. Eight years later she joined Working With Cancer® as one of their associates.
Working With Cancer® supports people affected by cancer to manage cancer in the
workplace through Consultancy, Training, and Coaching.
Currently they are running a survey into what working with cancer entails, and say “The more completed surveys we can gather the more robust and meaningful data we can gather around this important theme. This will help us create better support in the future.
Being able to work with or after cancer is an unresearched area but one of increasing importance to our society. Because of this Working With Cancer has partnered with the Institute of Employment Studies and Dr Liz O’Riordan, Breast Cancer Consultant Surgeon, to develop a survey that will enable us to understand the challenges cancer survivors have faced managing work and cancer. Its purpose is to help us understand better the difficulties people face and which adjustments, actions or behaviours will be more or less helpful.
The questionnaire is to be completed only by those who were or are employed during or after their treatment for primary or advanced cancer. It is in English but is open to be completed by any cancer survivor in any country. The advantages of taking part are that participants responses will help guide interventions to improve the lives and wellbeing of individuals in similar circumstances in the future.
Participation in this study is on a strictly voluntary basis and participants have the right to withdraw at any time without giving a reason. Any and all information provided will be anonymous and treated as confidential.
The questionnaire has several sections and takes about 30 minutes to complete. A summary of the results will be available on the WWC & IES websites early in 2022.
The survey can be accessed here:
