First, I’d like to share a link with you that will take you to the Children’s Oncology Group Cancer Survivorship Guidelines for survivors of childhood cancers: <<Click Here>>

Second, I’d like to share with you the role Cancer Survivorship Guidelines have played in the meeting of my healthcare needs as a young adult survivor.

This resource was developed to guide the life long follow up of survivors of childhood cancers; however, I have used it to guide educate and equip the healthcare providers charged with my care and I have found it to be helpful in the adult world, too.

I know my history and I have a clinical background in survivorship and late effects; let’s assume for a minute that the only information I had available to me was my original diagnosis and my treatment history. What would I know?

I would know that I had Ewing’s Sarcoma to my left chest wall which was successfully treated with chest radiation and multiple chemotherapeutic agents, including adriamycin, daunomycin, vincristine, and cytoxan.

Based on that information alone, I can determine that I am at risk for heart failure due to the adriamycin and breast cancer due to the chest radiation. I go to the survivorship guidelines and download the related information.

Heart Health

Breast Health

Together with my primary care provider, a plan of care could be developed that would encompass those conditions that I am at risk for based on my age and genetics as well as the late effects I am at risk for because of my cancer treatment history.

Survivors, let’s take time and DO the KNOWLEDGE.

On tap, ASCO guidelines for the long term follow up of adult survivors, but I encourage adult survivors to take a serious look at the pediatric guidelines as a first step.