By Nancy Keene, Wendy Hobbie, Kathy Ruccione
November 2006
ISBN: 0-596-52851-5
436 pages, $27.95 US, $32.95 CA

The second edition of Childhood Cancer Survivors is now available. More than 25 experts in pediatric oncology (survivors, parents, pediatric oncologists, nurse practitioners, psychologists, lawyers, educators) reviewed and helped update the text. According to the Institute of Medicine, more than 270,000 children, teens, and adults in the United States are survivors of childhood cancer. The surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, and stem cell transplants used to cure children can affect growing bodies and developing minds. If survivors know of these potential problems, they can take steps to identify, cope with, or treat them early if they do develop

Late effects are a huge problem for survivors. In an October 2006 article published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Kevin Oeffinger MD et al. found that of the 10,397 adult survivors surveyed, “…62.3% had at least one chronic condition; 27.5 had a severe or life-threatening condition.” To make the most of the lives they fought to save, survivors need understandable information. The second edition of Childhood Cancer Survivors charts the territory for survivors by providing state-of-the-art information about:

• Medical late effects from treatment
• Emotional aspects of surviving cancer
• Schedules for follow-up care
• Challenges in the heath care system
• Lifestyle choices to maximize health
• Discrimination in employment of insurance

Authors Keene, Hobbie, and Ruccione are experts in the field of childhood cancer. They have written, spoken, and advocated about all aspects of survivorship. Importantly, they have also talked to hundreds of survivors, with a wide range of issues and triumphs, and have included many of their stories.

Childhood Cancer Survivors includes extensive resources and a pull-out medical record-keeper.