Colorectal Cancer and Return to Work: A Pilot Study of Recruiting Cancer Survivors and Their Employers.

introductionIn this study we assessed the feasibility of recruiting colorectal cancer survivors and their employers to participate in research on returning to work after a cancer diagnosis.

methodsSemistructured qualitative interviews were conducted with 6 survivors and 4 employers to collect feedback on 2 recruitment approaches: 1) an employee/cancer survivor-focused approach whereby researchers obtained employer contact information directly from survivors and 2) an employer-focused approach whereby researchers interviewed employers to identify pathways to recruiting survivor-supervisor dyads. Recordings of all interviews were transcribed and analyzed.

resultsOf the 6 survivor participants, 3 (50%) consented to follow up with their supervisors. One of the 3 supervisors responded but declined participation in the study. The 4 participating employers included 2 compensation/benefits managers and 2 human resources managers. Employers identified specific avenues for potential recruitment of survivor-supervisor dyads, including first obtaining organizational support for participating in this type of research. DISCUSSION: While challenges and opportunities exist with both the employee- and the employer-focused recruitment approaches, our findings suggest that an employer-focused approach, whereby researchers obtain organizational support for the research first, may be more promising for recruiting survivor-supervisor dyads to studies on cancer and employment. Results from this study underscore the importance of gaining support from all stakeholders-from administrators to employees who are cancer survivors.

conclusionOur study informs recruitment strategies that bring together cancer survivors and employers to improve our understanding of the barriers and facilitators of returning to work after cancer, in effort to develop interventions that mitigate employment challenges for cancer survivors.