Supporting high school reentry of students receiving cancer treatment

Abstract

[Background] The educational achievements of high school (HS) students with cancer are particularly important, since these may affect their future. In this article, we review their school performance. [Methods] We surveyed HS students receiving cancer treatment that required hospital admission longer than three months at our institution between April 2012 and March 2018. We reviewed their medical records and assessed the outcomes of their school performance status. E-mail questionnaires were sent to determine the educational support provided by other hospitals. [Results] There were seven boys and four girls. Five had hematologic malignancies and six had solid tumors. Four received chemotherapy only, four received chemotherapy plus surgery with or without radiotherapy, and three received stem cell transplantation. The median duration of treatment since enrollment into HS was six (range, 3–18) months. As for the final outcomes of their school performance, two patients dropped out, five repeated the same grade, three returned to the previous school without repeating the same grade, and one who did not go back to the previous school graduated from HS. Since 2015, we have initiated a support program for patients with teachers as volunteers during hospital admission. Regarding educational support at other institutions, only one had a HS support program in the hospital and another three had a system similar to ours. [Discussion] HS students receiving cancer treatment have a tendency to drop out or repeat the same grade and their school performance is poor. Educational support is insufficient. Establishment of a support system for cancer patients and supporting their reentry to HS are urgent.