Active Treatment Completed
Treatment ends; survivorship monitoring planning starts immediately.
- 0: Years Since Treatment (starting point)
- 4/yr: Surveillance Freq (initial schedule)
- Pending: Late-Effect Monitoring (plan not yet built)
- Recurrence: Risk Focus (highest early on)
End of active therapy
Chemo, radiation, or surgery phase closes out for this patient.
Why survivorship care matters
Two risks remain: cancer recurrence and delayed treatment effects.
Both risks are tracked from day one of survivorship.
Handoff to survivorship team
Oncology transitions the patient into structured long-term follow-up.
Survivorship Care Plan Established
A written plan documents treatment history and future monitoring needs.
- 3: Plan Components (summary + 2 schedules)
- 4/yr: Surveillance Freq (starts high)
- Defined: Late-Effect Monitoring (if exposure present)
- Recurrence: Risk Focus (dominant early)
Treatment summary
Drugs, doses, radiation fields, and surgery details are recorded.
Recurrence surveillance schedule
Visit frequency set by cancer type and years since treatment.
Late-effect monitoring plan
Cardiac and secondary-cancer checks added for at-risk exposures.
Anthracycline or chest radiation triggers cardiac monitoring.
Early Survivorship — Years 1–5
Recurrence risk is highest early, so visits are frequent.
- 2–4/yr: Surveillance Freq (years 1–5)
- 1/yr: Late-Effect Checks (steady, if applicable)
- Recurrence: Risk Focus (dominant period)
- ~14: Visits By Year 5 (cumulative recurrence visits)
Dense visit schedule
Exams, imaging, and labs happen several times per year.
Recurrence risk curve
Most recurrences happen within the first two to five years.
Frequency drops from 4/yr to 2/yr around year two.
Late effects run in parallel
Cardiac and secondary-cancer checks continue on their own timeline.
Later Survivorship — Years 5+
Recurrence checks taper; late-effect vigilance does not.
- 0.5–1/yr: Surveillance Freq (years 5–15)
- 1/yr: Late-Effect Checks (unchanged)
- Late-Effect: Risk Focus (if exposed)
- Up to 20 yr: Onset Window (for some late effects)
Tapering recurrence risk
Fewer visits needed as years pass without recurrence.
Late effects can emerge late
Cardiotoxicity and secondary cancers can surface many years later.
Cardiac monitoring persists even as recurrence visits thin out.
Lifelong monitoring mindset
Some checks never fully stop for high-risk treatment exposures.
A Well-Structured Survivorship Plan
Two tracks, two timelines, one plan that adapts over years.
- Tapers: Recurrence Track (4/yr → 0.5/yr)
- Steady: Late-Effect Track (~1/yr, if exposed)
- 15+: Years Covered (full follow-up window)
- Balanced: Outcome (risk-matched monitoring)
Two independent tracks
Recurrence and late-effect monitoring follow separate schedules.
Appropriately tapered vigilance
Intensity matches actual risk instead of a flat fixed schedule.
Frequency falls as recurrence risk falls, not before.
Sustained late-effect watch
Cardiac and secondary-cancer checks continue for the full window.