Navigating lung cancer can be an emotional and difficult experience – especially for caregivers.
November is both Lung Cancer Awareness Month and National Family Caregivers Month. According to the American Cancer Society, lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer death among men and women, resulting in about 1 out of 4 cancer deaths. Fighting this serious disease is often a team effort, with a family member or friend taking on the caregiver role to offer emotional support and serve as “quarterback” help to alleviate the patient’s burden by keeping track of lung cancer treatment including appointments, medications and finding the latest research and resources.
Given their intimate role in a patient’s care, caregivers are sometimes referred to as “secondary patients.” Some studies report that a cancer diagnosis can have a great impact on caregivers given the critical role they play in a patient’s experience as advocate, confidant and supporter.
Katie Brown, Vice President, Support and Survivorship Programs, LUNGevity, and Anita Logsdon, RN, BSN, MSN, OSN, Oncology Hematology Care joined me to discuss the unique challenges and experiences of caregivers for people fighting such a devastating disease as lung cancer in light of findings from a NEW national survey of caregivers of people with lung cancer. They also shared advice on much needed resources and support.
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Take a listen below.
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For more information, visit: NavigateLungCancer.org.
Navigating Lung Cancer
Meet Our Guests:
Katie Brown, Vice President, Support and Survivorship Programs, LUNGevity
Katie Brown is the Vice President of Support and Survivorship Programs and a certified Patient Navigator. She is also the founder and co-creator of Lung Cancer Support Community, an online lung cancer support network for lung cancer patients and their family members. Katie has been a lung cancer advocate for fourteen years.
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Anita Logsdon, RN, BSN, MSN, OSN, Treatment Suite Nurse, Oncology Hematology Care
Anita Logsdon is a treatment suite nurse at Oncology Hematology Care. For 30 years, Oncology Hematology Care has served the regions of Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana as a premier provider of treatments for cancer and blood disorders, offering a wide range of services, state-of-the-art treatments and technologies.
Navigating Lung Cancer
