Although adults who have survived pediatric cancer often have
lingering health problems, they tend to believe their lives are back to
normal, finds a study released in the September issue of
Journal of American Medical Association.
Although 44 percent of the adult survivors reported having at least
one kind of physical or mental difficulty, only 11 percent of survivors
said they were in fair or poor health. Some 17 percent had mental health
difficulties such as depression, anxiety or insomnia. Others admitted
having chronic pain and trouble with everyday tasks or recreational
activities.
Allison Ross, a New York-based psychologist who specializes in
cancer patients, comments that survivors may be de-emphasizing the trauma
they experienced as children.
"The illusion of healthfulness is in fact a positive defense
mechanism," says Ross. "Many survivors of cancer utilize minimization to
more forward in their lives."
Still, coping mechanisms may have limited effect. Those who
reported fair or poor health were more likely to have been through an
intensive cancer treatment. Survivors of bone and central nervous system
tumors--which can involve intensive surgery, radiation and
chemotherapy--had worse long-term health.
Those who say they feel healthy after a bout of cancer should be
commended, says Ross: "Any way these adults can come out of such
childhood trauma with such an optimistic overview of their health--both
mental and physical--is a triumph.”
The research was lead by a team from St. Jude Children's Research
Hospital.
Tags:
adult survivors,
american medical association,
cancer patients,
cancer treatment,
central nervous system,
childhood trauma,
defense mechanism,
depression,
everyday tasks,
long term health,
mental health difficulties,
poor health,
recreational activities,
september issue
