Cancer Rehabilitation

A cancer survivor is described as someone living with and beyond cancer. At present, there are almost 200,000 people living with and beyond cancer in Ireland, and this number is growing each year.

The term ‘survivor’ can mean different things to each person, and is not always considered a good fit for every person with a cancer diagnosis. Alternative terms frequently used are ‘living with and beyond cancer’ or ‘person with cancer.’

‘Cancer survivorship’ begins from the time of diagnosis until the end of life. Cancer survivorship care involves identifying the diverse needs people with and beyond cancer, managing these needs, and supporting people to achieve optimum health and wellbeing.

After a cancer diagnosis, you can aim to keep up your strength and energy and improve your sense of wellbeing by:

• eating a healthy, balanced diet
• staying active in a safe, manageable way

This may also help you gain some control during a difficult time and feel that you are doing the best for your health.

There is more information on this website about eating well and being active during cancer. You can work with specialist healthcare professionals to get advice that is most appropriate and individualised to you.

Maintaining a healthy lifestyle after cancer can help you to:

• Feel better overall and have more energy
• Improve or manage the side effects of cancer treatment
• Prevent or control a variety of health concerns, e.g. diabetes, osteoporosis, high cholesterol

You can speak with your team about how to best look after your health after cancer.

Some general healthy lifestyle choices you can make are:

• Being physically active.
• Eating a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables.
• Reducing or limiting the amount of alcohol you drink.
• Protecting your skin from the sun and not using tanning beds.
• Being a healthy weight.
• Quitting smoking