Takeaway
Cancer treatment ends, but survivorship lasts a lifetime. Clinicians can make a difference by asking "How has this experience changed your life?" and responding with empathy.
Lifelong learning in clinical excellence | July 17, 2026 | 3 min read
By Alique Topalian, PhD, MPH, University of Cincinnati
At a follow-up appointment 22 years after my first cancer diagnosis, an oncologist told me I was cured. After surviving acute myeloid leukemia at age four and remaining in remission for more than two decades, there was “no chance” it would return. Then, at age 27, it did.
The invisible burdens of survivorship
I finished treatment expecting relief. Instead, I felt untethered. Like many survivors, I carried invisible burdens long after treatment ended. Cancer can continue to shape emotional well-being, relationships, identity, work, and daily functioning for years.
As cancer moves from the foreground to the background of daily life, much of a survivor’s care takes place outside the oncology clinic. Primary care physicians, cardiologists, neurologists, mental health professionals, rehabilitation specialists, and others become essential partners in long-term recovery. Yet patients frequently find themselves navigating these systems alone.
The impact of supportive services
As someone who spent months in and out of the hospital during treatment, I know firsthand how much supportive services matter. The psychosocial care, symptom management resources, and guidance I received helped me navigate much more than treatment. They helped me cope with uncertainty, isolation, and the challenge of rebuilding a life beyond cancer. I often think about survivors who are never connected to these services and how different their experience may be. Every patient deserves access to resources and coordinated care that help them recover, rebuild, and feel less alone.
Recognizing the connections
Patients may not recognize that insomnia, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, or persistent worry are connected to their cancer experience, and they may never raise these concerns during routine visits. When clinicians recognize these connections and talk about them with patients, opportunities for timely intervention are less likely to be missed.
As survivorship populations continue to grow, we must move beyond viewing survivorship care as follow-up cancer testing alone. Survivors need clinicians who are comfortable addressing psychosocial concerns and/or connecting patients with those who can.
Simple acts, powerful message
Some of the most meaningful acts of care are remarkably simple. A clinician who remembers a cancer history, acknowledges what a patient has been through, or asks how the experience has affected their life sends a powerful message—you are not navigating this alone.
Practical tips for clinicians regardless of specialty:
1. Use shared decision-making.
Ask about the patient’s values, goals, and preferences.
2. Remember that relationships and small moments matter.
Patients may forget specific recommendations, but they remember whether they felt heard, respected, and understood.
3. Recognize distress when it appears indirectly.
Insomnia, fatigue, frequent visits, or heightened worry may reflect fear, uncertainty, or trauma.
4. Remember that cancer may shape how patients view their health and interact with the healthcare system.
Visits for hypertension, pain, or preventive care may be influenced by a patient’s cancer history.
5. Be mindful of medical trauma.
Tests, scans, procedures, or waiting for results can trigger difficult memories. A little explanation and reassurance can go a long way.
6. Know supportive resources.
Counseling, social work, survivorship programs, support groups, palliative care, physical therapy, cognitive rehabilitation, and financial navigation can help match patients with services tailored to their evolving needs.
7. Communicate with colleagues across specialties to facilitate coordinated, whole-person care.
Survivors shouldn’t have to carry information between systems alone.
8. Ask yourself:
“If I were living after cancer, what would help me feel seen, safe, and supported?”
For cancer survivors, healing isn’t simply about being alive. It’s about rebuilding a life after a transformative experience. Exceptional care isn’t always a new treatment, test, or referral. Sometimes it’s the decision to pause, ask one more question, and recognize that a survivor’s cancer story may still be shaping the person sitting in front of you.
This piece expresses the views solely of the author. It does not necessarily represent the views of any organization, including Johns Hopkins Medicine.