Do you need a referral for cancer rehabilitation?

You may need a referral for cancer rehabilitation, depending on the service and your care pathway. Your oncologist, surgeon, physiotherapist, or primary care clinician can help connect you with an appropriate programme. Some services also accept direct enquiries, but they may still request medical details before booking an assessment.

A referral gives the rehabilitation team relevant information about your diagnosis, treatment, current restrictions, and clinical precautions. The team can then match support to concerns such as weakness, reduced mobility, fatigue, balance problems, pain, or difficulty returning to daily activities. Rehabilitation may be useful before, during, or after cancer treatment.

The first appointment commonly includes a review of your symptoms, movement, daily function, and personal goals. The plan may involve physiotherapy, occupational therapy, exercise guidance, fatigue management, or coordination with other members of your cancer care team.

Contact the rehabilitation service and ask whether it accepts self-referrals and which documents are required. If a clinician must refer you, request that the referral describes your cancer treatment, recent procedures, mobility concerns, and any precautions. Bring your medication list, treatment summary, and details of symptoms that limit walking, dressing, work, sleep, or exercise.

Tell the team what you want to regain, such as climbing stairs, lifting safely after surgery, or managing a return to work. Clear functional goals help the therapist choose suitable assessments and build a practical programme around your current health.

Seek urgent medical assessment for new chest pain, severe breathlessness, fainting, sudden weakness on one side, loss of bladder or bowel control, or rapidly worsening swelling. Contact your cancer team promptly for fever during active treatment, a painful hot swollen limb, a new wound problem, or pain that suddenly becomes severe. These concerns need medical assessment before starting or continuing exercise.

Ask which rehabilitation service fits your needs, whether you have movement or lifting restrictions, and who will send the referral. You can also ask what records the service needs and whether the programme will coordinate with your oncology appointments.