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Work situation after breast cancer: results from a population-based study
Elizabeth Maunsell1, Mélanie Drolet, Jacques Brisson
1Unité de recherche en santé des populations, Hôpital du Saint-Sacrement, 1050 chemin Sainte-Foy, Québec, QC, Canada G1S 4L8. elizabeth.maunsell@uresp.ulaval.ca
Journal of the National Cancer Institute
|December 17, 2004
Summary
This study found little evidence of workplace discrimination against women diagnosed with breast cancer. Most women who stopped working did so voluntarily, with no observed decline in working conditions for those remaining employed.
Area of Science:
- Oncology
- Occupational Health
- Sociology
Background:
- Breast cancer diagnosis can impact employment.
- Workplace discrimination is defined as negative or involuntary changes in employment status.
- This study investigates employment changes following a breast cancer diagnosis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess evidence of workplace discrimination in women with breast cancer.
- To examine changes in employment situation (position, wages, conditions) post-diagnosis.
- To provide information for working women concerned about employment after breast cancer.
Main Methods:
- Population-based retrospective cohort study in Quebec, Canada.
- Inclusion of women under 60 at diagnosis (breast cancer survivors) and matched controls.
- Telephone interviews conducted 3 years post-diagnosis/reference period.
Main Results:
- Similar working conditions at baseline between breast cancer survivors and controls.
- A slightly higher unemployment rate among survivors (21%) versus controls (15%) after 3 years.
- Most unemployed women in both groups reported voluntary cessation of work; no deterioration in conditions for employed women.
Conclusions:
- Little evidence suggests breast cancer diagnosis leads to workplace discrimination.
- The majority of women who were not working made a personal decision to stop.
- Employed women diagnosed with breast cancer did not experience adverse changes in working conditions.