This article aims to explain the hidden pressures on employees who are supporting a loved one with cancer.

Key takeaways

• A carer's own needs often go unnoticed, so it’s important to understand what they may be dealing with behind closed doors

• Caring can be physically tiring as carers tend to take on more responsibilities and often sleep less

• It’s common for carers to feel emotionally exhausted, isolated and invisible, and struggle to concentrate on their work

• Cancer is unpredictable, and living with this fact and the crises that often arrive unannounced, can be draining for a carer

Caring for a loved one with cancer can take a significant toll – physically, psychologically, emotionally and also practically. The carer's own needs often go unacknowledged, including by themselves, and they don’t always speak about their experience or ask for help. This can make the impact of caring difficult to see and support. This article shares the most common invisible impacts of cancer caring, so you as manager know what to look for and ask about. 

The physical and psychological impacts of caring 

Tiredness and lack of sleep

Caring responsibilities can be physically tiring, particularly if the carer is attending appointments, providing personal care or managing household responsibilities that were previously shared. Sleep disruption is common, either through caring overnight or through anxiety and change to routine, so your employee may be arriving at work exhausted before the working day begins. 

The unpredictability of cancer

Unlike many caring situations, where the affected person may have a long-term but largely stable illness, cancer can be very unpredictable. Treatment plans change, side-effects vary week to week and crises can arise with little warning. For example, a spike in temperature can be an emergency situation, needing urgent medical attention, and the carer may be responsible for contacting help and providing transport to hospital. This means carers are rarely able to plan ahead with any confidence. They may appear fine one week and completely overwhelmed the next, with no obvious explanation. 

The impact on concentration and performance

Even when physically present at work, a carer may be mentally elsewhere. Concentration, decision-making and memory can all be affected by their role as a carer. Deadlines may be missed, quality of work may dip and the employee may appear distracted or disengaged. Empathy and understanding, as well as flexibility, are key behaviours for a manager and colleagues to adopt for an employee who is also a carer.

The emotional impacts of caring 

Emotional exhaustion

Caring for someone with cancer is emotionally exhausting in ways that are not always visible at work. The carer may be managing fear, grief and uncertainty about their loved one's prognosis, sometimes over a prolonged period. They may be anticipating loss while also trying to remain positive and functional. Feelings of helplessness are also common.

Isolation and invisibility

When someone has cancer, the focus is naturally on them, so the impact on those caring for them can go unnoticed, and their needs unmet. Next to their loved one with cancer, they can feel invisible, and this can be difficult to talk about. 

Social connections outside work and caring may have reduced significantly, and it can often feel like life is reduced to only working and caring. The workplace may be one of the few spaces where the carer feels seen and acknowledged, and this makes the quality of their experience at work particularly important. 

The practical impacts of caring 

Financial pressure

Caring for someone with cancer often brings financial pressure, as the carer may need to reduce their hours, take unpaid leave or cover other costs related to the person they care for.