Cancer at work

More and more working people are facing cancer. Beyond treatment, the issue of work plays a vital role in patients’ lives. It serves as a point of reference, a place for social interaction, a source of financial independence, and an important part of one’s social identity. Returning to work can therefore play a central role in the recovery process.

However, this return is not always easy. Fatigue, side effects, anxieties, workplace adjustments… The challenges are numerous, and managers or employers do not always know how best to support their employees.

To address these needs, Gustave Roussy and Infopro Digital have created the “Work & Cancer” guide, a practical tool designed for companies and managers to facilitate job retention and a return to work after cancer.

Guide cancer et travail

PDF - 1.61 MB

A Key Step in Recovery

Returning to work after cancer is often seen as an important milestone. It helps people regain a sense of routine, reclaim their place in society, and look forward to the future once again. However, every situation is unique, and there is no “perfect” reaction when someone reveals their diagnosis.

In France, one in five people do not return to work after cancer. Tailored support can therefore make a real difference and contribute to a better quality of life.

A guide to help managers provide better support

Managers are often the first point of contact when an employee is facing illness. To help them, the “Work & Cancer” guide offers simple, practical guidelines that can be used in any organization, large or small.

It provides tips for:

• understand employees’ needs,
• communicate effectively at the right time,
• organizing work during an employee’s absence,
• preparing for a gradual and sustainable return to work,
• foster a climate of trust within the team.

This guide was developed based on feedback from managers, patient partners, HR directors, as well as psychologists, sociologists, and experts in labor law, in order to reflect the realities on the ground as closely as possible.

Toward a More Inclusive Workplace

Quality of life after cancer also involves supporting people in their social and professional lives. By facilitating dialogue between employers and employees and providing managers with practical tools, the “Work & Cancer” guide helps make the workplace more inclusive and responsive to everyone’s needs.

To learn more:

Check out the podcast “La Santé ça se travaille.”

In this episode: the rise in cases and its link to an aging workforce, prevention—given that 40% of cancers are preventable—and the challenges of returning to work.

This episode also highlights practical solutions, such as the “Cancer and Work” guide for managers produced by Gustave Roussy.

On this occasion, Nawel Belhaj, an occupational health psychologist, and Julien Bauduin, an ergonomist and Prevention Development Coordinator at APST 41 Prevention & Occupational Health in Loir-et-Cher, are pleased to speak with dedicated experts on the subject.

They are joined by Gwenn Menvielle, Research Director at Inserm, who will provide scientific insight; Sophie Le Menaheze-Veron, General Counsel at Infopro Digital, who provided the corporate perspective—both of whom contributed significantly to the “Cancer and Work” guide—and Marie Presset, Director of the Indre branch of the League Against Cancer.

Listen to the podcast:

• On YouTube
• On Spotify

Gustave Roussy: First Hospital to Join Cancer@Work

As Europe’s leading cancer center, Gustave Roussy is now the first hospital to join the Cancer@Work business network, a recognized public-interest organization founded in 2012 and dedicated to addressing cancer in the workplace.

As such, Gustave Roussy is committed to implementing initiatives that promote inclusion, job retention, and quality of life at work for its employees living with cancer.

A training seminar for managers

To better understand the challenges of cancer in the workplace and to improve support for employees facing cancer, Gustave Roussy offers companies’ senior management teams (CODIR, COMEX) a half-day training session led by experts from the institute.

Over the course of half a day, a medical oncologist from Gustave Roussy, a training coach, the director of branding and philanthropy at Gustave Roussy, and actors will address—in a hybrid format (in-person facilitation / videos featuring experts from Gustave Roussy / role-playing) to explore various topics related to the impact of cancer in the workplace and will share their latest research findings on this disease that affects us all.