Are cancer patients subject to employment discrimination?

We sought to determine whether patients undergoing treatment for cancer had experienced discrimination in employment and, if so, how that discrimination was manifested. We also sought to determine what variables affected the rate of discrimination, including age, gender, occupation, and employer size. We surveyed 422 patients diagnosed with cancer who were being treated at an acute-care, comprehensive cancer center in Houston, Texas, or were being followed after therapy. Whereas 76% of respondents indicated that they were working at the time of diagnosis and 82% said that they wanted to work full- or part-time, only 56% were working at the time of the study. Type of occupation was the main determinant of whether individuals were employed after diagnosis. The study documents self-reported discrimination in employment on the basis of cancer. Additional research is needed to determined the measures, including legal recourse, necessary to enable cancer patients to obtain and continue work.