Survivorship & Support

Recommended Links Resources on other Web sites for cancer patients and their caregivers more

Follow-Up

If the doctor recommends watching for signs of recurrence, it is extremely important that the patient keeps all follow-up appointments and performs regular self-examination. Testicular cancer is still a very serious disease if not found early, and it can grow rapidly. The disease can progress from stage 1, localized disease in the testicle only, to stage 3 disease, where cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, in just a few months.

Adjusting to the "New Normal"

Many men with testicular cancer find that, although they have looked forward to the time when active treatment is completed and "normal" life resumes, this can be a difficult period of transition. Complete physical, mental, and spiritual recovery can take many months or even longer. To help patients manage some of the many issues that may come up in survivorship, Memorial Sloan-Kettering offers a wide range of programs for cancer survivors and their families.

• Memorial Sloan-Kettering Counseling Center

  Our Counseling Center offers individual and family counseling sessions to help patients and their families address the problems that they may encounter in adjusting to life during and after treatment.

• Living Beyond Cancer

  People facing the challenges of cancer survivorship can access a variety of support services through the Living Beyond Cancer section of our Web site. This section includes information about professionally led support groups and counseling; survivorship clinics to manage late effects of cancer and treatment; recommendations about screening and healthy living; and specialized services to address sexual and reproductive health. We also offer a range of resources to help survivors, families, and friends better understand the complex emotional and social issues following treatment.

  Additional services are offered through our Post-Treatment Resource Program, which provides a full range of educational support services, including individual and family counseling, periodic lectures or workshops to provide medical updates, and practical guidance on employment and insurance issues.

• Integrative Medicine Service

  Our Integrative Medicine Service is designed to enhance cancer patients' quality of life through healing regimens that address the body, mind, and spirit. Beneficial complementary therapies include various types of massage, acupuncture, hypnotherapy, meditation, visualization and other mind-body therapies, music therapy, and nutritional counseling, as well as classes such as yoga, t'ai chi, and chair aerobics.

• Rehabilitation Therapy

  Following medical treatment or abdominal surgery for testicular cancer, a patient may notice changes in his strength, flexibility, balance, and endurance. Patients with testicular cancer can improve their function and quality of life through rehabilitation therapy. At Memorial Sloan-Kettering, physical therapists work closely with the medical team to design individualized exercise programs to increase patients' strength, endurance, and balance after treatments. They offer patients valuable techniques to increase mobility without increasing pain and discomfort after surgery. Therapists incorporate energy-conserving techniques in these treatments and provide patients with appropriate assistive devices to help decrease the fatigue they may experience during hospitalization and medical treatments.

  Our occupational therapists educate patients about the changes that can result from treatment and about adaptive equipment and compensatory techniques that can increase their independence during their daily routines. They also evaluate and treat patients' ability to perform basic daily activities, such as bathing, dressing, and moving around their home environment. Therapists also provide patients with exercises to help increase upper body strength, range of motion, and fine motor control to increase their independence and mobility.

  See Rehabilitation for further information about our services, including appointment information.