The research group "Living together with cancer" aims to better understand and support the complex challenges faced by people affected by cancer throughout the course of the disease.
The research group has four main topics:
- Quality of life of patients and their families
- Supportive cancer care
- Predictive modelling of quality of life in relation to biomarkers
- Voice, speech, swallowing, and oral function
In clinical practice, doctors and nurses are the first point of contact for patients and their loved ones. They provide information and support in dealing with problems during the illness. For the majority of people, this basic care is sufficient. They are able—sometimes with more, sometimes with less difficulty—to adjust to the illness and its consequences. However, many others have such a range of negative experiences during or after treatment that referral to a specialized psychosocial and/or (para)medical care provider becomes necessary.
Research over the past years has shown that physical, psychosocial, and spiritual problems occur frequently after cancer treatment and negatively affect quality of life. The issues vary greatly depending on the form of cancer and its treatment, but the top ten complaints include anxiety and worry, depression, pain, reduced physical fitness, fatigue, sleep disorders, cognitive problems such as memory and concentration difficulties, gastrointestinal problems including nausea, constipation, diarrhea, and issues related to nutrition in general, problems regarding sexuality and intimacy, and fertility concerns. These also include the challenges people often face when returning to work.
It is often difficult not only for patients but also for their loved ones to pick up the thread again after the often heavy treatment period.
Much research is still needed to gain insight into which patients and loved ones are struggling with what, and why. There is also limited scientific evidence for the cost-effectiveness (the balance between the costs involved and the intended benefits) of psychosocial and physical interventions aimed at improving life with cancer.
From 2009 to 2014, the chair “Living with cancer: innovative care programs and e-health” was initiated by the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF) / Alpe d’HuZes Foundation at VU Amsterdam. Since 2015, this was transferred into a full professorship “Psychosocial oncology” at VU Amsterdam and VU University Medical Center. Research is currently carried out in a joint venture between the Department of Otolaryngology / Head & Neck Surgery at Amsterdam UMC and the Department of Clinical, Neuro- and Developmental Psychology at VU Amsterdam.
Visit our website: www.samenlevenmetkanker.nl.
STAFF MEMBERS
- Prof. dr. Irma Verdonck-de Leeuw, Full Professor
- Dr. Femke Jansen, Senior Researcher
- Dr. Karen Holtmaat, Assistant Professor
- Lenneke Post, MA, PhD Student
- Dominique Molenaar, MD, PhD Student
- Fennetta van der Scheer, MA, PhD Student
- Sandra Biemans, Secretary