At last, the time has come when your intensive treatment is over, whether that be surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy or other treatment. This is something that you have probably been looking forward to for quite some time, but now that it has happened you may find yourself asking ‘Now what’? While you have reached another treatment milestone, many people we talk to say that ending treatment can be unsettling and you may have mixed emotions. While you may feel relief that the side effects can come to an end, you may also feel worried or anxious.
This module covers the various highs and lows of ending treatment, and aims to help you transition out of treatment and back to everyday living. Even if you are not quite finished, but are nearing the end of treatment (in the next month or so), you may find this section relevant.
This module is comprised of a number of parts, to cover the emotional, psychological, spiritual, physical, and social issues people encounter upon completing treatment:
- Emotional Adjustment: Coping with the uncertainty of treatment success; Coping with the fear of recurrence; Having an awareness of mortality
- Coping Approaches: Benefit finding vs the Tyranny of Positive Thinking
- Social Support Needs
- Physical Late-effects: Lymphoedema, menopause & fertility
- Staying Healthy After Cancer: Things you can do to reduce your risk of recurrence