Support and Challenges for Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Patients

Abstract

The current adolescent and young adult (AYA) generation represents a unique age group, among whom life changes dramatically due to living environments including school, seeking employment, marriage, and pregnancy, and due to lack of a social support system for cancer during the AYA years. The 3rd term of the Basic Plan for Cancer Control Promotion has stimulated increased momentum toward medical community involvement with AYA generation cancer patients, leading to the establishment of a Department of Cancer in the AYA Generation at our hospital. While promoting provision of highest quality team-based medical care, we have also been working to provide the best daily life/social life support, using our abundance of treatment experience, and taking into consideration various problems peculiar to AYA individuals, including anxiety about the future, a desire to preserve fertility, and a need for reproductive support. Pharmacists are involved in pharmacotherapy as part of medical treatments for AYA patients, aiming to provide optimal pharmacotherapy based on the practice of accurate pharmaceutical management. We foster collaborations between various clinical departments to tackle AYA-specific issues including preservation of fertility. Future challenges to address include long-term follow-up on such issues as late-stage disorders and endocrine disorders after AYA patient cancer treatment. Under current circumstances, our time for face-to-face interaction with patients as members of the hospital's medical staff is limited. Currently, we are involved in the operation of a breast cancer salon that aims to improve breast cancer patients' quality of life by supporting these patients during diagnosis and treatment.