abstract: 'Background: In Australia, 40\% of people diagnosed with cancer will be

  of working age (25-64 years). A cancer diagnosis may lead to temporary

  or permanent changes in a person''s labour force participation, which has

  an economic impact on both the individual and the economy. However,

  little is known about this economic impact of cancer due to lost

  productivity in Australia. This paper aims to determine the labour force

  participation characteristics of people with cancer, to estimate the

  indirect cost due to lost productivity, and to identify any inequality

  in the distribution of labour force absence in Australia.

  Methods: This study used national cross-sectional data from the 2015

  Survey of Disability, Ageing and Carers, conducted by the Australian

  Bureau of Statistics (ABS). The ABS weighted each component of the

  survey to ensure the sample represented the population distribution of

  Australia. The analysis was limited to people aged 25-64 years.

  Participants were assigned to one of three health condition groups: `no

  health condition'', `cancer'', and `any other long-term health condition''.

  A series of logistic regression models were constructed to determine the

  association between health condition and labour force participation.

  Results: A total of 34,393 participants surveyed were aged 25-64 years,

  representing approximately 12,387,800 Australians. Almost half (46\%) of

  people with cancer were not in the labour force, resulting in a

  reduction of \$1.7 billion to the Australian gross domestic product

  (GDP). Amongst those in the labour force, people with no health

  condition were 3.00 times more likely to be employed full-time compared

  to people with cancer (95\% CI 1.96-4.57), after adjusting for age, sex,

  educational attainment and rurality. Amongst those with cancer, people

  without a tertiary qualification were 3.73 times more likely to be out

  of the labour force (95\% CI 1.97-7.07).

  Conclusions: This paper is the first in Australia to estimate the

  national labour force participation rates of people with cancer. People

  with cancer were less likely to be in the labour force, resulting in a

  reduction in Australia''s GDP. Cancer survivors, especially those without

  a tertiary qualification may benefit from support to return to work

  after a diagnosis.'
affiliation: 'Bates, N (Corresponding Author), James Cook Univ, Coll Publ Hlth Med
  \& Vet Sci, Bldg 48,Douglas Campus, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia.

  Bates, Nicole; Lindsay, Daniel; Watt, Kerrianne, James Cook Univ, Coll Publ Hlth
  Med \& Vet Sci, Bldg 48,Douglas Campus, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia.

  Callander, Emily; Lindsay, Daniel, James Cook Univ, Australian Inst Trop Hlth \&
  Med, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia.'
article-number: '375'
author: Bates, Nicole and Callander, Emily and Lindsay, Daniel and Watt, Kerrianne
author-email: Nicole.bates@my.jcu.edu.au
author_list:
- family: Bates
  given: Nicole
- family: Callander
  given: Emily
- family: Lindsay
  given: Daniel
- family: Watt
  given: Kerrianne
da: '2023-09-28'
doi: 10.1186/s12889-018-5297-9
files: []
issn: 1471-2458
journal: BMC PUBLIC HEALTH
keywords: Cancer; Oncology; Costs; Health economics; Productivity
keywords-plus: 'COLORECTAL-CANCER; WORK; SURVIVORS; EMPLOYMENT; DIAGNOSIS; DISEASE;

  IMPACT; RETURN; INCOME; BURDEN'
language: English
month: APR 6
number-of-cited-references: '43'
orcid-numbers: 'Lindsay, Daniel/0000-0002-7471-3041

  Callander, Emily J/0000-0001-7233-6804

  Watt, Kerrianne/0000-0002-2275-081X'
papis_id: 9520e940131a8da70946ac312e1b459e
ref: Bates2018labourforce
researcherid-numbers: 'Lindsay, Daniel/GPS-6965-2022

  Callander, Emily J/M-5679-2017

  Watt, Kerrianne/G-2520-2010'
times-cited: '20'
title: Labour force participation and the cost of lost productivity due to cancer
  in Australia
type: Article
unique-id: WOS:000429849900001
usage-count-last-180-days: '0'
usage-count-since-2013: '9'
volume: '18'
web-of-science-categories: Public, Environmental \& Occupational Health
year: '2018'