Box 1.

I CARE intervention

Survivorship care involves both follow-up and aftercare. It can be defined according to the recommendations of the Institute of Medicine (IOM):1 prevention of recurrent and new cancers, and of other late effects; surveillance for cancer spread, recurrence, or second cancers; assessment of medical and psychosocial late effects; intervention for consequences of cancer and its treatment; and coordination between specialists and primary care providers to ensure that all of the survivor’s health needs are met. All of these aspects of survivorship care are incorporated in the Dutch national follow-up guideline for colorectal cancer.19 For the I CARE study, the follow-up guideline was summarised in a survival care plan and provided to the participating GPs before the start of the intervention. The survival care plan did not contain any personalised information or recommendations for the patient, but included general information on follow-up schedule, management of symptoms, and treatment side effects. The patient and GP were free to organise care as they deemed fit. Patients were allowed to transfer from the GP back to the surgeon at any point in time.