My Child Has Cancer

A Parent's Guide to Diagnosis, Treatment, and Survival

Della L. Howell M.D.

• Publisher: Praeger
• Year: 2008
• Print ISBN: 9780275996017
• eBook ISBN: 9780275996024
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Medicine
• Subtopic: General Health

They are four words that can terrify any parent to the core: Your child has cancer. Each year more than 13, 000 children and teenagers are diagnosed with cancer in the United States. The shock and demands of that diagnosis can be overwhelming for the parents, children, family, and friends as they face the emotions, along with the need to understand what the diagnosis means as well as what treatments are available and which are right for them. Parents, family members, friends, and professionals in healthcare will find support in this book. Written by a specialist in Pediatric Oncology, who is herself a cancer survivor as well as the mother of three young children, this book is clearly-stated and offers comprehensive information about the cancers that strike our youngest. They are four words that can terrify any parent to the core: Your child has cancer. Each year, more than 13, 000 children and teenagers in the United States are diagnosed with cancer. The shock and demands of that diagnosis can be overwhelming for the parents, children, family members, and friends, as they face the emotions along with the need to understand what the diagnosis means, what treatments are available and which are right for them. In this book, there is support for all. Written by a specialist in Pediatric Oncology who is herself a cancer patient as well as the mother of three young children, this guide offers clearly stated and comprehensive information about the cancers that strike our youngest. Dr. Howell explains the 12 types of childhood cancer, with leukemias and tumors of the brain and nervous system most common. She tells us what the overall prognosis is, and how cancers affect children differently than they do adults, as well as what little is known about the causes, and she details the controversies on that subject. Howell explains common procedures and tests before, during, and after therapy, as well as the potential side effects. This compassionate physician does not ignore the vitally important issues of emotion—how to find the calm and strength to help the child or teen and be his or her best advocate, how to tell the child the diagnosis, what questions to anticipate, and how to deal with other family members and friends.

Table of contents

• Series Foreword
• Introduction
• Abbreviations
• Chapter 1: Cancer and Children
• Chapter 2: Types of Cancer, Part I—Leukemia
• Chapter 3: Types of Cancer, Part II—Lymphoma
• Chapter 4: Types of Cancer, Part III—Brain Tumors, Neuroblastoma, and Kidney Tumors
• Chapter 5: Types of Cancer, Part IV—Bone Tumors and Muscle Tumors
• Chapter 6: Types of Cancer, Part V—Rare Pediatric Cancer Diagnoses
• Chapter 7: Telling the Child
• Chapter 8: Procedures at Diagnosis, in Therapy, and After Therapy
• Chapter 9: Chemotherapy and Taking Medicines
• Chapter 10: Radiation Therapy
• Chapter 11: Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Transplants
• Chapter 12: Common Side Effects
• Chapter 13: Complementary and Alternative Medicine in Cancer
• Chapter 14: Choosing Among Potential Treatments
• Chapter 15: Understanding the Medical System
• Chapter 16: Understanding Clinical Trials
• Chapter 17: Asking Questions, Finding Answers
• Chapter 18: Helping Family Members and Friends
• Chapter 19: When Cancer Treatments Stop Working
• Conclusion
• Appendix: Resources for Children, Adolescents, and Parents Dealing with Pediatric Cancer
• Notes
• Index