Adolescents with cancer: How can we meet their specific needs in developing countries?

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dc.contributor.authorStefan D.C.
dc.date.accessioned2011-05-15T16:16:38Z
dc.date.available2011-05-15T16:16:38Z
dc.date.issued2008
dc.description.abstractCancer occurring in adolescents (10 to 19 years) is more than twice as common as cancer in children but has received less attention in South Africa. In the process of becoming adults, adolescents undergo major physical, psychological, and social changes. They manifest specific behaviors and have special emotional needs. Malignant disease and its treatment have the potential to disrupt seriously the processes of adolescence, whereas the emotional instability and the risk-prone behavior characteristic to this age may jeopardize the success of the treatment. A further disruption in the management of these patients, in South Africa, is the need to refer children over the age of 13 to the adult medicine service. Research done worldwide on transferring of adolescents with cancer and other chronic diseases to adult health care underscores the need for a structured and individualized transition. Whilst, in some developed countries, adolescent cancer units already function for years, the extent of the problem has not yet been evaluated in most developing countries, where cancer registers do not even exist. A few simple measures might improve substantially the outcome of cancer in adolescents in the developing world. ©Freund Publishing House Ltd.
dc.description.versionReview
dc.identifier.citationInternational Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health
dc.identifier.citation20
dc.identifier.citation4
dc.identifier.issn03340139
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/13872
dc.subjectAdolescent
dc.subjectAdolescent Behavior
dc.subjectAdolescent Health Services
dc.subjectAdolescent Medicine
dc.subjectDeveloping Countries
dc.subjectEurope
dc.subjectHealth Services Needs and Demand
dc.subjectHumans
dc.subjectNeoplasms
dc.subjectPediatrics
dc.subjectSouth Africa
dc.subjectWorld Health
dc.subjectYoung Adult
dc.titleAdolescents with cancer: How can we meet their specific needs in developing countries?
dc.typeReview
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