[Narrator]

Although it may seem too early for you to be thinking about your life after treatment and long-term survivorship, now may be a good time to start putting together your survivorship care plan. This plan should contain the results of diagnostic tests and information about the cancer and the treatment that was used. Eventually, it should list immediate and lasting side effects that you had, and a list of plans for follow-up care. Contact information for questions about the course of treatment should be listed, along with the name and contact information of the doctor who managed your care. You should be familiar with the known long-term and late effects of treatment, signs and symptoms to watch for, and who to contact if they occur. Depending on your specific needs, your survivorship care plan may also include referrals to a fertility specialist, sex therapist, genetic counselor, or a psychiatrist or psychologist who specializes in working with cancer survivors. Financial counselors, insurance information, and estate planning specialists may also be helpful in your particular situation. Eventually, your care plan should also contain resources to help you adopt changes for a healthy lifestyle, such as community resources for fitness, exercise, and stress reduction programs, nutritional counseling, and smoking cessation programs designed for cancer survivors. Check with your cancer care team, physical therapist, local American Cancer Society office, or support group, a YMCA, fitness center, or yoga or Pilates studios for information about programs you might use. Internet-based searches might also locate programs in your area. 

The development of survivorship care plans is a new area. If your cancer care team does not offer you the chance to create such a plan, you can take the lead to make it happen. The American Journal of Nursing published the article "The Cancer Survivor's Prescription for Living" in April 2007. The article contains a care planning model called "A Prescription for Living," which can be used as is, or revised to more closely fit your needs. The model can be accessed on the American Journal of Nursing's web site – (www.nursingcenter.com/ajncancersurvivors).  NCCS also has more information on care planning at http://www.canceradvocacy.org/care-plans.

Thank you for taking the time to listen to this module. We hope the information provided helps you cope in the coming days and weeks, and helps you to arrive at a "new normal" lifestyle.

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