Returning to Work After Cancer

Going back to work is a personal decision. It depends on your job, your recovery, your energy, and your finances. Some people work through treatment. Others return afterward. Many find that a phased return helps them ease back in, starting part-time or with lighter duties.

Think about what would make returning easier. Flexible or reduced hours, working from home, extra breaks, lighter physical tasks, or a quieter space can all help. Fatigue and concentration changes are common early on, so building in flexibility helps. Many employers can make reasonable adjustments if you ask.

You decide how much to share about your health. Some people prefer to keep it private. Others find it easier to be open, so colleagues understand. It can help to plan a simple message in advance. If you need adjustments, a conversation with your manager or human resources can set them up.

In the United States, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) may protect you. It says your employer must make reasonable changes to your job if you need them. That covers changes you need because of the cancer, because of treatment side effects, or both. Examples include leave for treatment and recovery, a flexible schedule, rest breaks, a private place to rest, working from home, and shifting some tasks to a co-worker. An employer can say no only in narrow cases. One is undue hardship, meaning the change is too costly or too difficult for that employer. The other is clear medical evidence that you would be a real safety risk.

You do not have to tell an employer that you have or had cancer. It matters mainly when you need one of those job changes. Before a job offer, an employer cannot ask you about cancer at all.

If work feels overwhelming, talk with your care team. They can advise, and they can provide documentation for adjustments or leave if that helps.

• Call 911 or go to an emergency department if you have chest pain, sudden shortness of breath, fainting, or sudden weakness or numbness on one side of the body while at work or on your commute.
• Call your care team immediately, day or night, if you have a temperature of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, or shaking chills, while you are still on chemotherapy or have a port or other line. CDC calls a fever during chemotherapy a medical emergency and says to phone your doctor at once. If you cannot reach anyone quickly, go to an emergency department and tell the staff there you are on chemotherapy.
• Call your care team the same day if a work day leaves you so exhausted that you cannot stay safely awake to drive.
• Call your care team within a day or two if fatigue, pain, or trouble concentrating is clearly getting worse since you went back, or if numbness in your hands or feet is making your job unsafe.

• CDC — Fever and Cancer Treatment: When to Call the Doctor
• U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission — Cancer in the Workplace and the ADA
• National Cancer Institute — Coping: Life After Cancer Treatment
• American Cancer Society — Life After Cancer