Surviving after the cancer: a review of the Quality of Life of cancer survivors - Thanks to substantial medical progress, today the number of cancer survivors constantly increases. Thus, ever more frequently, patients and healthy professionals must treat a new condition: the cancer survivorship. This condition is peculiar for both its somatic (e.g. the late and long term effects of the treatments) and psychosocial (e.g. psychological distress, fear for a relapse, perceived social support) implications. The present paper is a review of the recent international literature about cancer survivorship; a condition still less known in Italy. First the definition of cancer survivorship is discussed and then cancer survivorship is addressed through a four point model of the concept of Quality of Life. In the last section, the authors will examine the expectation for future research, as well as the possible limitations, together with the practical implications of this topic.
Keywords: Adults, cancer, emotional distress, oncology, survivors, Quality of Life

Maria Antonietta Anunziata, Barbara Muzzatti, Katia Bianchet, Massimiliano Berretta, Emanuela Chimienti, Arben Lleshi, Umberto Tirelli, in "PSICOLOGIA DELLA SALUTE" 3/2009, pp. 55-71, DOI:10.3280/PDS2009-003004