Multimorbidity and Employment Outcomes Among Middle-Aged US Cancer Survivors.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to evaluate the relationship between multimorbidity and subsequent 2-year employment outcomes among middle-aged United States (US) cancer survivors. In addition, we examined whether the relationship differed by survivor characteristics.

METHODS: Data of 633 cancer survivors (ages 51 to 64) from the 2014 Health and Retirement Study were used to identify multimorbidity profiles and evaluate associations between multimorbidity and prolonged unemployment during follow-up.

RESULTS: Approximately 64% of cancer survivors met the criteria for multimorbidity. Latent class analysis revealed three distinct multimorbidity profiles distinguished by the presence or absence of psychiatric disorders. We observed a significant association between high psychiatric multimorbidity and prolonged unemployment after 2-year follow-up (relative risk = 2.78, 95% Confidence Interval = 1.28 to 6.00), with the effect more pronounced among low-income survivors.

CONCLUSIONS: Psychiatric multimorbidity was associated with prolonged unemployment among middle-aged cancer survivors, particularly among low-income survivors.