Recent studies revealed that, while most women diagnosed with and treated for breast cancer experience little longer‐term psychological distress, a subset of affected women report prolonged persistent distress sufficient to substantially impair quality of life. Understanding distress variability following breast cancer diagnosis is essential to identify those at risk for persis-tent distress who might benefit most from therapeutic interventions.

Fear of cancer recurrence is defined as “fear, worry, or concern relating to the possibility that cancer will come back or progress". While low level of concerns about the potential threat of cancer recurrence is normal, realistic response, high fear of cancer recurrence can be detrimental, affecting individuals’ quality of life and functional capacity.

Working-age cancer patients face barriers to resuming work after treatment completion. Those resuming work contend with reduced productivity arising from persisting residual symptoms. Existing studies of return to work (RTW) after cancer diagnosis were done predominantly in Western countries. Given that employment and RTW in cancer survivors likely vary regionally due to healthcare provision and social security differences, we documented rates and correlates of RTW, work productivity, and activity impairment among Chinese cancer survivors in Hong Kong at one-year post-treatment.