Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42446789›Full record

SynthesisJournal of occupational rehabilitation2026

The Impact of Prostate Cancer Treatment on Work Participation: A Systematic Review.

Dunya Tomic, Sophie K Schellack, Lisa Abdel-Malek, Caron Jander, Supun T Hettige, Ewan MacFarlane, Jeremy Millar, Karen Walker-Bone

Abstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Journal of occupational rehabilitation, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Dunya TomicMonash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia. Dee.Tomic@monash.edu.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2471-2523
Sophie K SchellackGerman Cancer Society, Kuno-Fischer-Straße 8, 14057, Berlin, Germany.
Lisa Abdel-MalekMonash University, Wellington Road, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia.
Caron JanderMonash University, Wellington Road, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia.
Supun T HettigeAlfred Health, 55 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia.
Ewan MacFarlaneMonash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia.
Jeremy MillarAlfred Health, 55 Commercial Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia.
Karen Walker-BoneMonash Centre for Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Monash University, 553 St Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC, 3004, Australia.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeProstate cancer is the most common cancer amongst men, yet how its treatment affects work participation remains poorly understood. This systematic review synthesised quantitative evidence on work participation following prostate cancer treatment, comparing treatments and identifying associated factors and evidence gaps.

methodsFive databases (MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Google Scholar) were searched (May 2025) for English-language, peer-reviewed articles reporting treatment-specific work outcomes amongst men with prostate cancer. The review followed PRISMA and was registered with PROSPERO (CRD420251061347). Risk of bias was assessed using Joanna Briggs Institute tools, and certainty of evidence using GRADE.

resultsTwenty-eight articles (24 studies, 39,966 men) were included. Most were cohort (n = 15) or cross-sectional (n = 6) studies; 15 compared ≥ 2 treatments. Median time to return to work (RTW) ranged from 14 to 56 days. Amongst low risk of bias studies reporting adjusted estimates, RTW was faster (adjusted hazard ratio 2.13, 95%CI 1.62-2.80) and long-term absenteeism less likely (adjusted odds ratio 0.53, 95%CI 0.42-0.68) after robot-assisted than open radical prostatectomy. Absenteeism ranged from < 14 to > 50 days and was longer with advanced disease and physically demanding work. The only randomised trial found no RTW difference between treatments (p = 0.49). No studies evaluated outcomes by occupation. Most used self-reported measures with limited confounder adjustment.

conclusionVery low-certainty evidence suggests that work participation after prostate cancer treatment varies by treatment type and disease severity, although heterogeneity and methodological limitations constrain interpretation. Standardised, validated measures and adequate confounder adjustment are needed to inform treatment decisions, survivorship care, and workplace support.

Indexed as

AbsenteeismEmploymentProstate cancerReturn to workSurvivorshipTreatment outcomesWork participation

Identifiers

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.