Breast cancer: one in two women return to work one year after diagnosis

Until now, little data existed at the national level on this important aspect of the patient care pathway. A study carried out by researchers from Claude Bernard Lyon 1 University, Inserm, Gustave Eiffel University and the Hospices Civils de Lyon, based on Health Insurance data, made it possible to quantify this phenomenon, shedding light on the diversity of situations experienced by these women. The results are published in the journal Clinical Breast Cancer.

Return to work after breast cancer: very diverse situations

Breast cancer affects more than 60,000 women each year in France. For several years, his diagnosis has improved significantly. More patients are overcoming cancer and an increasingly priority aspect of care is helping them improve their long-term quality of life. Among the elements at play, returning to work constitutes an important step. This very personal experience is more or less complex and more or less well experienced depending on each situation.

To better understand the diversity of patient situations, Alexandra Dima, researcher in health psychology, conducted a unique study. “It is the responsibility of public services to best organize the return to work of women after treatment for breast cancer. To do this, we need to better understand their trajectories and how these women experienced it. (…) Better knowledge of these trajectories would also help health professionals to better plan care pathways, and patients to better manage their balance between personal and professional life.“.

Half return within a year of diagnosis, almost 90% within two years

As part of the TRAVERSÉE research project, researchers had access to data from the National Health Data System, making it possible to establish statistics on the time it takes for women to return to work after breast cancer. The researchers included a group of patient representatives and health professionals in the formulation, contextualization and interpretation of the established methods and statistics. An innovative aspect of the project.

Results :

• During the three years following diagnosis, 7% of women did not have a stable return to work;
• The number of stop periods varies from 1 to 25 stops per person. Half of the women had 2 stops or less.
• Among those who returned to work, half did so after 8 months of downtime;
• The total number of days off varies between 3 days and 3 years. Half of the women had interruptions of up to 15 months in total.

These figures show a great diversity of cases but they nevertheless show that most women return to work. By grouping together “typical routes”, the researchers showed that:

• Half of women returned to work within the first year after diagnosis;
• Around 4 in 10 women returned during the second year after a period of part-time work;
• On the other hand, around 1 in 10 women have experienced periods of complete work stoppage extending over 3 years since diagnosis.

Improving return to work through targeted interventions

It is particularly for women, whose return to work period is particularly long, that we need to think differently about support, the study points out. “This detailed information allows clinicians to offer personalized support to patients and design targeted interventions that facilitate a successful return to work.“, conclude the authors of this work

Scientists, patient representatives and healthcare professionals strongly encourage patients to seek support in this important stage of their professional journey.