The labour market, psychosocial outcomes and health conditions in cancer survivors: protocol for a nationwide longitudinal survey 2 and 5 years after cancer diagnosis (the VICAN survey)

Abstract

IntroductionToday, a growing need exists for greater research into cancer survivorship, focusing on different spheres of the day-to-day life of diagnosed patients. This article describes the design and implementation of VICAN (VIe après le CANcer), a national survey on French cancer survivors.Method and analysisThe target population included patients aged 18–82, diagnosed with cancer between January and June 2010, and registered in one of the three main French Health Insurance Schemes. It was restricted to 12 tumour sites. Sampling was stratified using a non-proportional allocation, based on age at diagnosis (18–52 and 53–82) and tumour site. Data were collected from telephone interviews with patients 2 and 5 years after diagnosis, a medical survey completed by the physician who initiated cancer treatment, and information from the national medicoadministrative database on reimbursement data and hospital discharge records. First data collection, 2 years after diagnosis, occurred between March and December 2012. Second data collection, 5 years after diagnosis, will be conducted in 2015. Analyses will be conducted on various outcomes: quality of life, health status and psychosocial conditions, with a particular focus on the impact of cancer diagnosis on the labour market. The variety of measurements included in the survey will enable us to control a wide range of factors.Ethics and disseminationThe methodology of the VICAN survey was approved by three national ethics commissions. Results of the study will be disseminated through national and international research conferences, and in articles published in international peer-reviewed journals.

Vaccine hesitancy in the French population in 2016, and its association with vaccine uptake and perceived vaccine risk–benefit balance

“…However, refusals were not related to the topic of the survey, as the announcement letter did not mention vaccination. Furthermore, the response rate was similar to those observed in phone surveys carried out in large populations [ 29 ]. Moreover, our data were weighted to be representative of the studied populations.…”

Fertility Status Perception, Fertility Preservation and Desire to have Children in Cancer Survivors: French VICAN Survey

“…Implemented in 2012 and 2015, the national VICAN (‘vie après le cancer’) survey studied actual state life in cancer survivors 2 and 5 years after diagnosis. As described in a previous publication [ 21 ], the VICAN survey targeted men and women diagnosed between January and June 2010 and registered in the long-duration disease file of the National Health Insurance file of one of the three main French health insurance schemes, which cover >90% of the population. It was restricted to 12 cancer sites with good, intermediate or poor prognosis, accounting for 88% of cancer incidence in France.…”

“…Eligibility was restricted to French-speaking patients diagnosed with their first malignancy and living in France for at least 2 years. The first data collection was conducted in 2012, 2 years after diagnosis, and included 4349 participants (global response rate 43.7%) [ 21 ]. The second data collection in 2015 involved a second interview of 2009 individuals who originally participated in the survey in 2012.…”

“…We combined three sources of data (patient questionnaires VICAN 2 and 5, medical surveys completed by physicians who initiated cancer treatment and national medico-administrative databases) to define the treatments received: surgery, chemotherapy regimen, radiotherapy and endocrine therapy [ 21 ].…”

The Quality of Working Life Questionnaire for Cancer Survivors (QWLQ-CS): a Pre-test Study

“…The growth in cancer prevalence is caused by early detection of cancer, improved treatment, and increasing age among cancer survivors [ 2 ]. The increasing retirement age is also causing more cancer survivors to face the challenges of having cancer while participating in the labour market [ 3 ].…”