A new study released by Kidney Cancer Canada found that kidney cancer patients who were more engaged in their care and treatment had a better quality of life.
In the study, stress, fatigue, the lack of access to sequential treatment, and the fear of their cancer getting worse, are indentified most often as the biggest barriers to improved quality of life. KCC members who participated in the Patient Care Study rate their health higher, are more proactive in researching their health concerns, and say they are better able to deal with these concerns through support from other people with kidney cancer and from patient groups.
This speaks to the power of taking a pro-active role in managing your care by being as informed as possible, and building a support network that you can lean on during your cancer journey. Read the full article.
We share a similar mission here at Navigating Cancer, and take it one step further by offering free health tracking tools to cancer patients so they can more accurately record their cancer treatment. These tools can be shared with a patient’s health care team to provide a summary of their medications, treatments, side effects and general well being which can be used to optimize their care.