title: Managing cancer and employment: Decisions and strategies used by breast cancer survivors employed in low-wage jobs.
abstract: Advances in breast cancer screening and treatment have led to an overall 5-year survival rate of 90%. Many of these cancer cases are diagnosed in working women. Few studies have explicitly examined the cancer-work interface, as experienced by low-wage earning women with breast cancer. This study uses in-depth, semistructured interviews with 24 low-wage breast cancer survivors to identify employment decisions and factors that influenced or enabled these decisions, and examine the individual strategies and workplace supports used to manage the cancer-work interface among a subset of women (n = 13) who continued to work. Future research areas and clinical implications are discussed.
authors.affiliation: a School of Social Work , University of Maryland , Baltimore , MD , USA.
authors.forename: Jennifer E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Swanberg
authors.affiliation: a School of Social Work , University of Maryland , Baltimore , MD , USA.
authors.forename: Helen M
authors.initials: HM
authors.lastname: Nichols
authors.affiliation: b Department of Social Work , Hallym University , Chuncheon, Gangwon-do , South Korea.
authors.forename: Jungyai
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ko
authors.affiliation: c Department of Epidemiology and Public Health , University of Maryland , Baltimore , MD , USA.
authors.forename: J Kathleen
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Tracy
authors.affiliation: d Department of Health , Behavior and Society, University of Kentucky , Lexington , KY , USA.
authors.forename: Robin C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Vanderpool
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D003657:Decision Making; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012456:Salaries and Fringe Benefits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017741:Survivors / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data
keywords: breast neoplasms; cancer survivorship; cancer–work interface; employment; qualitative research; workplace supports