Effectiveness of a tailored return to work program for cancer survivors with job loss: results of a randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Background: Up to 53% of cancer survivors (CSs) experiences job loss during or after treatment. To support CSs with job loss in the Netherlands, a tailored return to work (RTW) program was developed. The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness of the program on duration until sustainable RTW in CSs with job loss.

Material and methods: This study employed a two-armed (intervention/control) randomized controlled design with one-year follow-up. The primary outcome measure was duration until sustainable RTW. The secondary outcome measures were: rate of RTW, fatigue, quality of life, and participation in society. Descriptive analyses, Kaplan-Meier estimators and Cox regression analyses were conducted.

Results: Participants (N = 171) had a mean age of 48.4 years (SD = 8.6). The majority was female (69%) and breast cancer survivor (40%). The crude hazard ratio (HR) for duration until sustainable RTW was 0.86 (95% CI 0.46-1.62; p = 0.642). In the adjusted model, the intervention group had a slight, but statistically non-significant, improvement in duration until sustainable RTW compared to the control group (HR 1.16; 95% CI 0.59-2.31; p = 0.663). The program did not have any significant effects on secondary outcome measures.

Conclusion: As the tailored RTW program did not demonstrate a statistically significant effect on duration until sustainable RTW in CSs with job loss, implementation of the program in its current form is not recommended.