Employer Response to Breast Cancer Important for Return to Work
Reviewed study: "Employer Response to Breast Cancer Important for Return to Work" by R. Bouknight and others, Journal of Clinical Oncology, January 20, 2006
Is this for me? If you are wondering if you'll be able to return to work after treatment for breast cancer, you might want to read this article.
Background and importance of the study: When your breast cancer treatment is over, you may be feeling happy, relieved, and maybe a little worried because you're unsure about what your life will be like. If you worked outside the home before treatment and stopped work during treatment, you may be wondering if it will be difficult to return to work. Past research has shown that most breast cancer survivors return to work at the same level of employment and income that they had before treatment, which is good to know. This research showed that health status, type of treatment, age, income, and other demographic factors all influenced if and how women returned to work.
In the study reviewed here, the researchers wanted to know how much influence an employer and the workplace environment had on a woman's return to work after breast cancer treatment. Earlier studies on returning to work did not look at the employer's role.
Study design: Researchers at Michigan State University interviewed by telephone 416 women who were diagnosed with breast cancer between June 2001 and April 2002. The women were 30 to 64 years old, employed, and lived in the metropolitan Detroit area. All the women were interviewed twice, and nearly all had a third interview.
In the first interview, all the women were asked questions about:
- job status and benefits,
- employer accommodation for cancer treatment,
- perceived discrimination because of cancer treatment,
- health status, and
- demographic information (age, race, education, income, etc.)
three months before their diagnosis. The interview was conducted shortly after diagnosis. The second interview asked the same questions and was conducted one year after the women's diagnosis. In addition, 407 women were asked the same questions a third time, 18 months after their breast cancer diagnosis.
The researchers did not ask the women if they continued working while receiving treatment.
The study was funded by the National Cancer Institute.
Results: The researchers found that 82% of the women had returned to work one year after their diagnosis, and 83% were working 18 months after their diagnosis.
The researchers didn't ask how soon after treatment the women returned to work, so we don't know if some women returned to work sooner than one year. The researchers also didn't ask if the women continued working during treatment, so we don't know that either.
About 87% of the women perceived their employers as being accommodating to their cancer and treatment needs. About 7% of the women felt their employer discriminated against them because they had cancer. The researchers did not specify the type of discrimination (emotional vs. financial or both).
The women in the study had the following characteristics:
- average age was 51 years
- average household income was about $47,000
- 80% were white, and 20% were African American
- 73% had a college degree or had attended college
- 60% were married, and 30% were divorced, separated, or widowed
- 90% reported good health before their diagnosis
- 42% had invasive cancer in the breast, 29% had regional or distant metastasis (cancer that has spread beyond the breast), and 26% had in situ (non-invasive) cancer
- 44% had mastectomy, 65% received radiation, and 58% received chemotherapy
- 77% were employed full time; 23% were employed part time
- 96% had health insurance, and 64% had sick leave
- 67% had managerial jobs
- 11% had jobs that required heavy lifting, and 50% had jobs that required information analysis (a lot of thinking and decision-making)
After taking into account factors such as health status, cancer type, treatment type, and type of job, the researchers found that women who thought their employers were accommodating to their cancer and its treatment were more than twice as likely to return to work compared with women who thought their employers were not accommodating. These results were significant, meaning that they were likely due to the perceived employer accommodation and not just to chance. Women were less likely to return to work if heavy lifting was a job requirement. This result also was significant.
Conclusions: The researchers concluded that the perceived willingness of an employer to accommodate workers' breast cancer and treatment is an important factor in women returning to work after treatment. This is the first time this result has been reported in a study. The researchers also concluded that working breast cancer survivors can be helped immensely by an employer who is sensitive to their health needs.
What breastcancer.org says about this article…
Employer Response to Breast Cancer Important for Return to Work
This small study is helpful if you're asking yourself, "Will I be able to return to work when I'm done with treatment?" The answer is an overwhelming "Yes!" In fact, many women continue to work while receiving treatment.The study does have some limitations:
- only 416 women participated,
- the women were all from one area and may not be representative of women who live in other areas,
- the women in the study were younger (average age was 51) than most women diagnosed with breast cancer (average age around 60), and other research has shown that younger women are more likely to return to work.
Still, this study highlights how important a supportive workplace is to a woman with breast cancer. And it's reassuring to know that so many women view their workplaces as supportive. It's also encouraging to know that, when you return to work, you're likely to find an environment that is willing to help you adapt to any challenges you may be facing.