A Patient Wonders About How to Plan for Future Care

Mary, a 59-year-old African American female, was diagnosed with Stage II colon cancer nine months ago. She underwent a hemicolectomy with an end-to-end anastamosis, followed by chemotherapy with FOLFOX (Oxaliplatin, 5-Fluorouracil, Leucovorin). She is happy to be done with active treatment (e.g., surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy), but she is unsure about the care she'll need in the future. Her nurse practitioner (NP) makes an appointment for her to complete a survivorship care plan. What should Mary expect at this appointment?

		What should Mary expect at this appointment?   A. Mary has ''survived'' all of her treatment; the NP will check her for the final time and turn her over to her primary care provider with a plan of care. Hopefully, Mary will not need their services again.   B. The NP wants to surprise Mary with a celebration visit with balloons, music, and lots of hugs. All the chemotherapy nurses are invited to discuss her care plan.   C. The NP will review Mary's active treatment and provide summary copies for her and her primary care provider. They will create a care plan to address her follow-up schedule and potential long-term problems.   D. Mary is now a survivor, since she is done with her treatment. The NP wants to make sure Mary thinks about survivorship and quits worrying about dying.   E. Mary is entering her permanent phase of survivorship. The NP wants to create a care plan that will be realistic about Mary's chances of dying from her disease.