What is Oncology Rehabilitation?
Though many advances in the treatment of cancer have helped to redefine as a chronic illness, the pathology and treatments associated with this diagnosis change how you may be able to fulfill your role as a parent, spouse, sister, brother, grandparent, co-worker and/or friend. These changes may limit your ability to participate in meaningful activities through pain, weakness, anxiety, cognition and sleep changes.
As Treatment for cancer includes a combination of medical, surgical and radiation therapies, it is reasonable to approach these changes with a combination approach. Oncology rehabilitation, also known as Cancer rehabilitation, is a developing field within the field of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation( PMR). Oncology Rehabilitation can address these changes and decrease the impact on personal meaningful activities and roles.
How does Oncology/Cancer Rehabilitation Help?
As part of your medical oncology team, oncology physiatrists focus on functional or mental changes associated with serious illness, specifically cancer, or unplanned injury which may also be associated with cancer or well-performed cancer treatments that impact your ability to live a meaningful life during and after cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Our medical appointments focus on current functional limitations that limit your participation in meaningful activities and to fulfill your role as a parent, spouse, sister, brother, grandparent, co-worker and/or friend.
Oncology Physiatrists consider how pain, weakness, limited activity endurance and poor mobility may be affecting you and address those concerns through a multifaceted integrative, traditional and some proven alternative medical and therapeutic approach that can be applied and adjusted as needed through your entire cancer treatment.
By addressing altered biomechanical changes through medical interventions combined with personalized physical, occupational, or speech therapy programs, we can help restore your function and participation in playing with grandkids, attending special events, talking on the phone, cycling, dancing, and many more.
Through the use of integrative Music therapy and psychology interventions sometimes adding medication when needed, we can help decrease the anxiety, and depression associated with diagnosis and treatment allowing you to focus on other important goals like planning a birthday party, getting a good night sleep, running a 5k or marathon, planning a once-in-a-lifetime trip or working to that next promotion.
With nutrition and food therapy, we can help optimize health, find appealing and interesting foods to help decrease your muscle loss and risk of long term metabolic changes that may leave you predisposed to other serious illnesses and conditions such as Heart Disease, Stroke and Diabetes.
Oncology Physiatrists also help decrease suffering and restore function through preventive measures in personalized multi-faceted "prehabilitation" programs creating nutritional changes and physical, mental or emotional fatigue. Using this approach has also been found to improve tolerance of cancer treatments, decreasing delays associated with intolerable side effects and functional limitations. Thus potentially improving survivorship and helping establish your new role and identity as 'Cancer Survivor'.
When Can Oncology Rehabilitation Help?
Oncology rehabilitation can be adjusted to help meet your needs at any time from initial diagnosis to throughout survivorship. It is often not considered that oncology rehab may be helpful to decrease the functional changes that may have been present at time of diagnosis. A timely program has been shown to help decrease some of the side effects associated with cancer treatments, such as neuropathy, malnutrition, cognitive changes, and weakness. By helping decrease these effects, some individuals are better able to tolerate and thus more timely complete their recommended cancer treatments.
With a more preventative mindset, oncology rehabilitation has also been implemented prior to planned surgeries, helping to improve recovery function and minimize post- procedural complications. In other cases, participation in a multi-factorial oncology rehabilitation program has been shown to improve physical status and allow for different interventions, such as surgery to allow for more rapid control of cancer. Both of these help to reduce the burden of active intense cancer treatments.
During active cancer treatment and oncology rehabilitation can help with symptom management by helping you maintain your function through exercise, compensatory skills, and properly chosen and effective medical equipment (walkers, wheelchairs, shower chairs, Reachers, scheduling apps, etc) less burden is placed on caregivers and those supporting you. This decreases the overall financial and emotional costs associated with cancer and its treatments.
Although active cancer treatments may be complete, some of the effects from those treatments may be longer lasting, or may not be present for several years. Those effects may include pain, localized weakness or general fatigue. Oncology Rehabilitation can also help with targeted interventions and a complete evaluation of how this may be affecting your ability to perform your roles.
If there should come a time when you no longer feel the need to continue with active cancer treatments, oncology rehabilitation can also help by continuing with functional limitations that may limit your or your caregiver’s ability to meet your needs. Through education and properly chosen adaptive equipment, we can help maintain dignity and preserve the memory of you as a parent, spouse, sister, brother, grandparent, co-worker and/or friend.
Who is an oncology physiatrist or cancer rehab doctor?
In the most straightforward definition, an oncology physiatrist is a medical physician (MD or DO), whose main focus is on restoring your ability to function and participate in meaningful activities to fulfill your personal and societal roles of Parent, Spouse, Sibling, Grandparent Friend co-worker and many others. WE strive to help with this during and after a cancer diagnosis and treatment.
As a medical physician (MD or DO), an oncology psychiatrist has training and education on how serious illnesses, such as cancer or unplanned injuries that can be associated with cancer progression or treatment, affect your ability to fulfill your roles that provide you a valuable and meaningful life. We help you reach your functional and life goals that may have been impaired by serious illness or unplanned injury.
A physiatrist must first complete a four-year bachelor's degree (BS/BA) prior to attending a four-year allopathic (MD) or osteopathic (DO) medical school. Following medical school, a physiatrist completes a one year medical internship followed by a three year physical medicine and rehabilitation (PMNR) residency.
An oncology physiatrist then participates in a one-year fellowship focused on the functional limitations associated with cancer and treatments developed to treat and manage cancer. This training provides an oncology physiatrist a unique perspective on the challenges you may be facing from this serious illness.
Where can I receive Oncology rehabilitation?
Although medical advancements have greatly improved the number of cancer survivors, there continues to be only a few fellowship trained oncology physiatrists with the unique training to address your functional and biomechanical changes associated with the serious illness: cancer and unplanned injuries.
Recently, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) added the requirement for cancer centers to have a rehabilitation professional as part of a comprehensive medical oncology team to receive a treatment center designation.
NCI cancer center designation means that your center is one of 51 cancer centers in America that not only has the ability to provide cutting-edge cancer teachers but is actively participating in the quest to cure and prevent cancer.
These cancer centers are not only known for their excellent comprehensive cancer treatment, but also seek to serve you and their communities with scientific research in preclinical trials and participate in collaborative medical studies to progress medical treatment and minimize lasting disability.
Why Oncology Rehabilitation?
Because you matter.
Because your goals and dreams are important.
Because how you interact with others cannot be replaced and because cancer treatment and cancer survivorship can be better as we work with you as part of your medical team to understand and address your personal concerns with a personalized multifaceted approach with proven integrative, therapeutic, traditional and some alternative medical interventions.
By S. Lay
Oncology Physiatrist
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