Your feelings after cancer treatment

Macmillan Cancer Support Medical Reference

This information is about some of the feelings you might have after your cancer treatment is over and, if you’re finding your feelings hard to cope with, what may help.

A diagnosis of cancer can bring about a range of strong emotions such as fear, anger and sadness. It can sometimes also bring on depression.

Following a cancer experience, most people are usually relieved that the main part of their treatment is over, and they’re looking forward to getting back to the life they had before the cancer. However, this isn’t the case for everyone. People may experience a range of emotions when their treatment is over. This can come as a surprise to both the person who has had the treatment and those around them.

Some people find they are still struggling to cope with the emotions they experienced during treatment. Others find that they’re facing changes and new challenges after treatment. This may include physical changes as a result of treatment, or dealing with emotions they may not have had before.

Many people have to continue with some form of treatment for months or possibly years. This may be biological therapy or hormonal treatment to control the cancer or to prevent it returning. Having ongoing treatment can often act as a reminder of your diagnosis. It may also have significant side effects and it may continue to have an impact on your daily life. This can affect how you feel and make getting back to a normal routine more difficult.

It’s not possible in this short section to go into detail about the different emotions you may have after cancer treatment. But it can reassure you that emotional effects are common, and that help is there.

• Emotions after cancer treatment
• Physical changes after cancer treatment and your feelings
• Ways of coping with your feelings after cancer treatment
• Professional help to cope with your feelings after cancer treatment