Being Mindful of Accidental Disclosure

Brian Morvant on March 21, 2022

tags: At Work, Back to Work, Disclosure, Job Search, Legal

For months, Mark Hoppus had been seeking treatment for stage 4 diffuse large b-cell lymphoma. In June 2021, he took a photo of himself while receiving chemotherapy and added the caption, “Yes hello. One cancer treatment please.” He intended to share it on social media with only his close friends, but accidentally shared it with all his followers.

You see, Mark Hoppus is the bassist/vocalist for the hit rock band Blink-182, and that post went to his over 1 million followers. (To read more about Mark’s experience with cancer, check out this article by People magazine.)

Deciding whether or not to disclose your diagnosis is a nuanced decision that is unique to your own needs. Being aware of your legal rights during the job search and within the workplace can help you make those decisions. It can be equally important to be mindful of the ways a diagnosis might accidentally be disclosed as well, such as on social media, an online blog, while working remotely or using an employer-owned laptop.

Below are some articles to help you think through your decisions around disclosure and maintain the level of privacy that works best for you.

For more in-depth detail, check out the recorded session of our Balancing Work & Cancer webinar Disclosure, Privacy & Online Brand.

If you have any further questions, please feel free to reach out to Cancer and Careers staff at cancerandcareers@cew.org.