Abstract 2034: The young-onset colorectal cancer community speaks out about financial and emotional health
Authors: Danielle Peterson, Tamara Springer, Kimberly Newcomer, Ronit Yarden
Journal: Cancer Research (2020)

Abstract Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most commonly diagnosed cancer in the United States and the second leading cause of cancer deaths. The 5-year survival rate of advanced CRC is low, at 14%. As CRC continues to rise in young people (20-49), we and others have shown that these patients are diagnosed at advanced stages of the disease. As a result, many of these individuals are subjected to aggressive treatments. Young-onset (YO) CRC patients and caregivers face unique clinical challenges including fear and stress around the disruption of family and career developmental tasks and goals suggesting a need for additional psychosocial and financial support. A cross-sectional study, conducted in the form of an online survey, was launched to better understand the experiences around employment and the resulting financial and psychological stress of YO-CRC patients and caregivers. YO-CRC patients and survivors (N=884) and caregivers (N=203) who were diagnosed between the ages of 20 to 50 years old completed an online questionnaire that was based on established instruments including PROMIS, EORTC-QOL-30, and EORTC-CR-29.Our survey found that 75% of patients and survivors were employed full-time at the time of diagnosis and only half of them were working at the time of the survey. Similarly, two-thirds of the respondents who were working part-time at diagnosis were working at the time of the survey. This suggests that a significant number of YO-CRC patients are unable to work after diagnosis. Interestingly, a quarter of them have been without evidence of disease for 2-10 years. Not surprisingly, more than half of the patient and survivor respondents indicated that they feel financially stressed (56%), worry about the loss of their family's financial stability because of the cost of cancer care (54%), and worry about the financial problems they will have in the future due to their illness/treatments (66%). Of those who feel financially stressed, 35% reported significant feelings of sudden panic/anxiety. Similarly, 40% of caregivers reported feeling financially stressed. This could be connected to 40% of them reporting taking a leave of absence, quitting a job, or leaving school because of the patient's diagnosis.These survey results indicate a need for the YO-CRC community to have access to resources that reduce the burden of loss of employment and resulting financial and psychological stress. Given the reality that 75% of our respondents had children, we hypothesize that employment and financial stress are potentially correlated to compounding parental responsibilities. Further studies will investigate financial and psychological well-being specific to the impact of child-rearing during the cancer-related loss of employment. Programs tailored at the YO-CRC community should consider the unique challenges presented by potential employment changes, parenting roles, and the likelihood of financial and psychological stress. Citation Format: Danielle Peterson, Tamara Springer, Kimberly Newcomer, Never2Young Board, Ronit Yarden. The young-onset colorectal cancer community speaks out about financial and emotional health [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research 2020; 2020 Apr 27-28 and Jun 22-24. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2020;80(16 Suppl):Abstract nr 2034.