Support for cancer treatment

Prostate cancer 

Once a decision has been made on a radical prostatectomy, we will refer you to a physiotherapist. 

We will prepare a customized rehabilitation program for you. Physiotherapy is provided in three phases: before surgery, immediately after the operation on the ward, and after you have been discharged. Your commitment to independent exercise according to the instructions provided will help you recover from the surgery. 

At the first appointment, the physiotherapist will prepare you for surgery by instructing you how to identify the pelvic floor muscles and their functioning. This is arranged well before the operation, mainly as group-based teaching, but also as individual sessions if needed. At the same time, the physiotherapist will advise you how physiotherapy can help to speed up recovery from any adverse effects and complications of the operation. 

After the operation, physiotherapy on the ward focuses on mobility exercises, restoring functional capacity, and enhanced breathing exercises. 

After being discharged, you will need to exercise independently based on the instructions provided. Whether you will need further rehabilitation will be evaluated about 6 weeks after the operation, including an assessment of the degree of incontinence and how much of a problem it is for you. Typically, 1 to 3 further physiotherapy sessions are required. 
 
We will also assess swelling in the lower limbs if necessary and instruct you to perform exercises to gain muscle strength. 

Breast cancer 

You may be referred to physical therapy by a physician or breast-cancer nurse at the symptom clinic due to impairment, pain, and/or lymphedema of the arm. 

The purpose of physiotherapy is to improve your functioning through counseling, guidance, therapeutic exercise, and manual therapy. 

Based on a physiotherapeutic examination and assessment, we will prepare you a plan for treating and monitoring arm impairment/lymphedema. We will also advise you how to obtain and use compression products for lymphedema. There will be 1 to 3 physiotherapy visits. 

Cancer changes a person’s everyday life, including managing at home, working capacity, finances, caring for children or other family, and personal relationships. You and your family members can discuss your situation with a social worker, who will be able to offer personalized advice and guidance on many of the problems and questions arising from your new life situation. The social worker can advise you on the variety of social benefits available to cancer patients. Your primary nurse can book you an appointment. 

You can talk to us if you require particular support after being diagnosed with cancer or if you have otherwise experienced a difficult life change. Our unit employs psychiatrists and psychotherapists. We meet with some 400 patients every year, with an average of 4 or 5 sessions with each. No fewer than 1 in 10 cancer patients requires special psychosocial support from experts. Your attending physician will refer you to our unit if needed. 
 
There are separate support groups for young breast cancer patients and for mothers of young children. These groups meet at the Psychiatric Outpatient Clinic. You can sign up for a support group if you have a referral from your attending physician. 

We organize various group information sessions at the Comprehensive Cancer Center about once a month. You may sign up for these through your primary nurse or at the patient office at any stage of your disease. 

Sessions are held to provide information about 

• a healthy lifestyle, 
• treatment of arm edema (swelling), and 
• radiation therapy follow-up and side effects of treatments. 

Sufficient and diverse nutrition is important both during and after your treatment period. Cancer treatments can cause a wide range of symptoms that may affect how you eat and whether you can keep food down. Loss of appetite, nausea after radiation therapy or chemotherapy, and periodic changes in your sense of taste are fairly common symptoms reported by cancer patients. In some cases, it may be physically impossible for you to eat, for instance because of the surgery you have had. If this happens, your nutrition will be ensured with special means at the hospital. 

Sufficient and diverse nutrition helps you feel good and cope during your treatments. You can get a referral from your physician to see a therapeutic dietitian.

Cancer affects not only you but also your family and other loved ones. In families with children, cancer usually has a profound impact on everyday life. When a member of a family is diagnosed with cancer, each family reacts in its own way, and it makes a great deal of difference whether the cancer patient is a child or an adult. 

When an adult develops cancer, they often need to reassess how to care for the children and how to provide for the family. It is usually a good idea to tell the children honestly, in ways appropriate for their age and development, about the cancer and the changes it will cause to the family’s life. Ensuring that children receive sufficient support if their father or mother falls ill is extremely important.

If you are elderly, we can refer you if necessary to a geriatrician or geriatric oncologist for chemotherapy evaluation. The geriatrician will provide a variety of instructions on coping at home and administering medication. 

A hospital chaplain regularly visits the Department of Oncology, and you may have a meeting if you wish. Your family members may also talk to the hospital chaplain.

The chaplain plays an important role in the comprehensive care of metastatic cancer patients. Your primary nurse can arrange a meeting with the hospital chaplain.

The Palliative Care Unit provides support for managing difficult symptoms at any stage of the disease. The Palliative Care Unit also employs a pain specialist, who can help you in finding suitable pain medication for prolonged postoperative pain. Your attending physician will refer you to our unit or to our pain specialist if necessary.

A counseling nurse from the Cancer Society of Finland provides consultation on the 3rd floor of the Department of Oncology (opposite the elevators) on weekdays from 09:00 to 15:00. Walk-in consultation is available, or you can make an appointment by calling 09 471 73291 or 050 4088 420. 

The service is intended for cancer patients and their family members at all stages of the disease. 

The counseling service offers 

• cancer-related information and personal advice. 
• low-threshold consultation: patients can come and discuss any issue related to cancer or coping with the disease. 
• information on the services provided by the Cancer Society, such as rehabilitation courses, events, and patient guides. 

The counseling nurse is a trained health care professional, and the counseling service is provided free of charge. 

A counseling nurse from the Cancer Society of Finland provides consultation on the 3rd floor of the Department of Oncology (opposite the elevators) on weekdays from 09:00 to 15:00. Walk-in consultation is available, or you can make an appointment by calling 09 471 73291 or 050 4088 420. 

The service is intended for cancer patients and their family members at all stages of the disease. 

The counseling service offers 

• cancer-related information and personal advice. 
• low-threshold consultation: patients can come and discuss any issue related to cancer or coping with the disease. 
• information on the services provided by the Cancer Society, such as rehabilitation courses, events, and patient guides. 

The counseling nurse is a trained health care professional, and the counseling service is provided free of charge. 

Peer support - OLKA

Cancer Society of Finland

Propo - Finnish Prostate Cancer Association

Eturauhassyöpäpotilaiden tuki ry – Support organization for prostate cancer patients

Peer Hub at the Health Village (Terveyskylä)