A trusted and essential companion for everyone dealing with a diagnosis of cancer.
"If you're reading this book, you're probably reeling... This book is going to do one specific thing for you: it's going to help you get your balance back."
-from the introduction
Cancer is a Word, Not a Sentence is a practical guide written for people who have just been diagnosed with cancer. It aims to help them -- and their loved ones -- make sense of what happens next and to plan a course of action. Dr. Robert Buckman describes everything that comes after the diagnosis, including tests, the stages of the disease, treatment options and follow-up.
Having treated patients and interacted with their families for years, Dr. Buckman presents a six-step plan that provides information needed to make important choices in seeking the best treatment:
- Communicating with the medical team
- Treatment options and their pros and cons
- The right questions to ask and where to get information
- The decisions the patient has to make
- The possible outcomes.
Dr. Buckman also focuses on daily life: how to talk to your spouse or children, how to break the news to friends, and how to obtain the information you need. There's also a section addressed to family and friends who "just don't know what to say."
In simple and straightforward language, this practical book provides a guide for use in the real world.
(20100908)
