Shows that 70% of people diagnosed with cancer between 2015 and 2021 in the U.S. survive at least five years.
This improvement in survival rates is prompting healthcare leaders to call for a major redesign of cancer care—one that extends beyond treatment and focuses on long-term survivorship.
Ten healthcare leaders told Becker’s that as cancer increasingly becomes a chronic condition, health systems must shift from episodic, treatment-centered models to continuous, survivorship-focused care. Survivors often face lasting physical, emotional, social, and financial effects from cancer and its treatment, which require structured, long-term support.
Several leaders emphasized that survivorship planning should begin at diagnosis, not after treatment ends. Personalized survivorship care plans, early management of late treatment effects, and coordinated care across oncology, primary care, behavioral health, and specialty services were repeatedly highlighted as essential. Many also pointed to the need for expanded survivorship-focused workforces and improved clinician education on long-term cancer effects.
Technology and data-sharing were identified as key enablers, with digital symptom monitoring, AI-driven risk stratification, and interoperable care plans helping to reduce fragmentation and improve continuity of care. Leaders also stressed that success in oncology should now be measured not only by survival, but by quality of life, functional outcomes, and a survivor’s ability to return to meaningful daily activities.
Overall, the leaders agreed that survivorship is no longer the final phase of cancer care it is the longest and most complex stage, requiring intentional investment, multidisciplinary collaboration, and systemwide redesign.
Source: Becker’s Hospital Review
Author: Elizabeth Gregerson
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