Managing Your Treatment

Having cancer can change life as you know it. Normal daily routines are suddenly replaced by what can seem like an endless number of appointments, tests and treatment sessions.

 

Many patients feel burdened by the added stress of trying to balance their cancer care with everything else — working, paying bills, keeping up with friends and family and staying involved with activities that make them happy. The struggle of adjusting to your treatment schedule can add to the emotional and physical toll cancer can have.

Creating a plan of action can help you balance these competing demands. The following steps will help you be in control:

Put together your cancer team
Know your treatment options
Track your treatment for the best results
Take one day at a time and reach out to friends and family–they are probably eager to help.

Clinicals Trials

Clinical trials contribute to knowledge and progress against cancer. If a new treatment proves effective in a study, it may become a new standard treatment that can help many patients. Trials may also answer important scientific questions and suggest future research directions. Because of progress made through clinical trials, many people treated for cancer are now living longer.

Clinical trials test experimental agents; they can also compare different combinations of approved drugs, or different approaches for giving therapy. In the past, clinical trials were sometimes seen as a last resort for people who had no other treatment choices. Today, patients with common cancers often choose to participate in a clinical trial during their first round of treatment.

Patients who join a clinical trial join a research team with the goal of fighting cancer. They work with a well-qualified group of health care professionals that may include doctors, nurses, social workers, dieticians and patient advocates. Depending on the type of trial, they may receive care at a large cancer center, a university hospital, a local medical center or a physician’s office.