I was laid off right after I was diagnosed with cancer. After I finished treatment, I tried to get a job but nobody would hire me. I felt like I was a displaced person. I had the education, the experience, the talent, but because I had the big "C" I couldn't get a job anywhere. — Chris, 54-year-old prostate cancer survivor.
For centuries, fear of cancer has caused those with the disease to be stigmatized. By the nineteenth century, the public had developed a horrible phobia about cancer. People viewed the disease as sinister, relentless and possibly contagious. Cancer was considered so shameful that people had trouble even speaking the word. Until the middle of this century, doctors were as helpless in treating cancer as they were in explaining what caused it. Even they regarded it with fear and fatalism, just as their patients did.
The Cancer Stigma in the Workplace: Common Myths Ignorance about cancer is what gave rise to the myths, misconceptions and prejudices that still prevail today. Unfortunately, these often influence the way employers and co-workers regard those who have survived the disease. Among the myths and misconceptions are:
• Cancer is a death sentence. Many people incorrectly believe that those with cancer will die prematurely.
Employers can be reluctant to make an investment in someone they believe won't be with them over the long
term. This attitude is not based on fact. The National Cancer Institute reports that more than half of all people
diagnosed with cancer today will survive their illness.
