12 Background: Undesired work loss comprises one of the many personal costs faced by cancer patients and their families. Multiple studies have described the long-term employment outcomes among patients with early-stage breast cancer, and show that a significant proportion of women face long-term job loss as a result of their cancer diagnosis and treatment. However, little is known about the employment outcomes of partners of breast cancer patients. Methods: Women with non-metastatic breast cancer identified by the Detroit and Los Angeles SEER registries between 6/05-2/07 were surveyed at 9 months (Time 1) and 4 years (Time 2) after diagnosis. Latina and black women were oversampled. Partners were surveyed at Time 2. We performed descriptive analyses of those partners who were not retired at the time they completed the survey. As part of a larger survey assessing the experiences of partners of breast cancer patients, partners were queried regarding the impact of the patient’s breast cancer diagnosis and treatment on their own employment and finances. Results: Of 774 eligible partners, 517 (67%) completed the survey. We included 280 non-retired partners in our analyses. 54% were white, 31% were Latino, and 10% were black. The majority of partners (86%) worked during the year following the patient’s diagnosis and 219 (90%) were working at the time of survey 4 years post-diagnosis. 50% of partners reported that work was a welcome source of support; 32% decreased their work hours as a result of the patient’s breast cancer. In order to maintain health insurance, 64% reported it was very/extremely important to keep their jobs and 51% reported it was very/extremely important to avoid changing jobs. 32% of partners reported their financial status was worse off because of the patient’s breast cancer; 20% were worse off regarding health insurance, and 19% were worse off regarding employment status. Conclusions: In contrast to breast cancer patients, most partners reported long-term job retention. Many partners kept working or avoided changing jobs in order to maintain health insurance. Nearly one-third of partners reported that their financial status was worse off because of the patient’s breast cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Impact of Race and Health Insurance Status on Response to Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer Patients
