Making the Best of a Hospital Experience
When a visit to a hospital is necessary, knowing what to expect, who to contact, and how to ask questions can be immensely beneficial. In this article, author Sandra Boeschen writes how "with a little preparation, an inpatient or outpatient visit can be the healing event you need."
Talking to Your Children About Your Cancer Diagnosis & Treatment
This article discusses how to talk to children about cancer diagnosis and treatment. The author, Michael Haas, MA, MFT, writes how "explaining cancer to a child is difficult and requires thoughtfulness, compassion, and some understanding of how children of different ages deal with trauma."
Sexual Health & Cancer Treatment: Understanding the Problem and Finding Solutions
In this article, we discuss the impact cancer treatment can have on sexual functioning. By addressing this important topic, it is our hope that this article will facilitate a constructive discussion between patients and their partners and health care providers.
Your Mind and Cancer Treatment: Understanding and Addressing Cognitive Decline
Often called "chemobrain," patients going through various cancer treatments can sometimes experience cognitive dysfunction, such as slowed thinking, memory problems, and poor coordination. In the first of two new articles in our Becoming Your Own Advocate series, we address the issue of cognitive dysfunction by discussing its causes and offering various solutions that can help prevent or minimize its effects.
Information That Could Save Your Life
Guest contributor Marie Savard, MD, wants "each of us to take medical matters literally into our own hands" by compiling and maintaining a complete set of our own medical records. In the second new article in our Becoming Your Own Advocate series, Dr. Savard describes why a complete set of records is important and offers tips for how to go about finding and requesting copies.
Integrative Cancer Pain Management
The article addresses the issue of cancer pain management. Gwendolyn Stritter, MD, a pain specialist in the San Francisco Bay Area, outlines her approach to successful pain management and discusses the benefits of an integrative strategy that combines both pharmacological and non-pharmacological technique
Chinese Herbal Medicine and Chemotherapy in the Treatment of Hepatocellular Carcinoma: A Meta-analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most common malignancies worldwide, is highly resistant to standard therapy. Does Chinese herbal medicine added to chemotherapy for the treatment of HCC improve survival and tumor response?
How to Sleep Well: Understanding the Importance of Rest and Optimal Health
While the exact reasons for why we need sleep are still unknown, what is clear is that chronic poor sleep can have serious health consequences. There is growing evidence to suggest that there is a deeper, more reciprocal relationship between sleep and immune function than previously thought.
How to Define Your Needs: Getting Support from Family and Friends
Research over the past three decades has shown that when women with breast cancer receive wanted emotional support from close family members or friends, they are able to better adjust to their diagnosis and experience lower levels of stress.
How to Find New Treatment Choices: Locating Clinical Trials and New Drugs in Development When Standard Treatment Is Not An Option
This article, part of our Becoming Your Own Advocate series, seeks to help patients needing a new treatment approach find ready access to some of the most effective sources for locating information on newly emerging medical treatments.
Patient Assistance Plans: Pharmaceutical Companies Helping Patients Get Their Medicines
There is help available for many people who can't afford their medicines. These programs, frequently called patient assistance programs (PAPs), are designed to help those in need obtain their medicines at no cost or very low cost.
How to Tell Your Physician You're Using Complementary & Alternative Medicine: Why It's Important For Them to be Informed
In this article, we discuss the issue of letting your physician know about your use of complementary and alternative medicines, why it's important for them to be informed, and how to communicate this to them effectively.
How to Communicate Effectively with Your Doctor: Working Toward Informed and Shared Decision Making
In this article, we present suggestions to help enhance preparation for medical consultations and offer some specific questions to ask your doctor. We also include findings from recent research that may help dispel common myths about the clinical encounter and the ways in which doctors and patients truly interact.
How to Evaluate a Clinical Study: Guidelines to Help Understand Published Research
Science is a work in progress. Every day, promising studies are released and new treatments are approved. But how can you evaluate whether the information you're reading is relevant to your own health or to that of a patient, friend, or family member?