Hi Wendy,

Thanks for reaching out to us. I’m sorry to hear you’ve had so many challenges since your diagnosis. Trying to figure out the best professional path forward while dealing with ongoing treatment side effects is an issue that we hear about a lot from our community. Encountering difficulties with memory and concentration (also known as “chemo brain”) can arise during and after treatment, but there are some steps you can take to minimize the impact. I would recommend reading this article about working with chemo brain for useful tips: https://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/at-work/where-to-start/managing-treatment-side-effects/working-with-chemo-brain. 

Since you have such varied work experience, you might consider finding a position that allows you to do similar work from home. Today, it’s not uncommon to find customer service positions that are home-based. Also, telecommuting full or part-time could be a possible solution to help manage your side effects like focus and concentration issues since there will be less distractions than you might find in a work environment where you have to interact with a lot of people. I would recommend you check out FlexJobs (https://www.flexjobs.com/). It’s a useful resource to learn about flexible/remote jobs and the companies that are hiring for them. They also have a very robust job board that is fully vetted and focused on those types of roles. It is membership-based, but you can explore everything before you commit. If you decide to join you can enter the code CANCER when you check out to receive a 50% discount (and if you have any concerns at all about the fee, please let us know and we will try and work something out for you).

Also, if you’re interested in expanding your professional skillset, CAC has a Professional Development Micro-Grant program that provides cancer patients and survivors professional development opportunities to enhance existing skills or build new ones. Although the application period for the 2019 grant year has closed, we would be happy to notify you when the 2020 application period opens! More information can be found here: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/resource/micro-grants 

I would also recommend checking out the following resources:

• 2019 Job Search webinar: https://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/community/videos/bwc/job-search
  

• Job Search Toolkit (2nd Edition): http://www.cancerandcareers.org/publication_orders/new (features advice on improving resumes, cover letters; interview and networking tips and other useful tools to help you during a job search)


• Resume Review Service: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/resume_reviews/new (free program where a professional coach will review your resume and provide feedback to help you refine it towards your current work goals)

• Managing Your Treatment Side Effects: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/at-work/where-to-start/managing-treatment-side-effects/work-and-your-treatment
  

I hope this is helpful. If you have any further questions, please feel free to contact us at cancerandcareers@cew.org or 646-929-8032.

Kind regards,

Nicole Franklin, MPH

Senior Manager of Programs

Cancer and Careers