Cancer Science & Therapy

Cancer Survivorship Care: A perspective from an Occupational- Participation Approach

Abstract

Siew Yim Loh and Hans Jonsson

The burden of cancer taking a form of a chronic illness warrants a shift in the health care delivery to address the many neglected functional impacts (physical-psychosocial and occupational dysfunctions) from cancer. Balancing the current traditional medical care (that focuses on the tumour/illness), with the essential non-medical tasks of dayto- day participation and self-care tasks are both needed for cancer conditions that now requires care over indefinite period. This paper aims to highlight occupational-participation as an expansion of the international classification of functioning (ICF)’s concept of participation, to encapsulate a holistic approach for better functional outcomes and occupational wellbeing in the emerging field of cancer survivorship. Occupational-participation, a central construct in the field of Occupational Therapy, is the person’s engagement in work, play and daily living which is necessary for health and well-being. Cancer survivors can be empowered toward healthy occupational-participation to attain a healthy, ‘health-after-cancer’ status via a model of ‘occupationalparticipation for cancer survivorship’ (MOP.CS). The model is novel for addressing this missing link where its focus on occupational-participation living, can be used for designing seamless intervention programs for the connection to a “healthy-although-ill” living for cancer survivors.