Cancer: What To Expect

If cancer is suspected, what is the first thing my doctor will do?

The first thing your doctor will do if he or she suspects that you have cancer is probably (if they are not trained or qualified to manage that problem) to make a referral to a consultant or a specialist that deals with cancer. Hopefully someone who deals with your particular cancer.

Will I go through significant lifestyle changes after a cancer diagnosis?

Most people do not go undergo any significant lifestyle changes with the mere diagnosis of cancer. If there will be lifestyle changes they typically come after treatment, and if there are any lifestyle changes they're usually for the better. Meaning people will tend to eat healthier. They actually decide that I am going to go to the gym now. If they're smoking two packs a day they will cut that back as far as they possibly can. Many people tend to find their way back to their place of worship. They tend to find their way back to the family dinners. These are the types of lifestyle changes that typically occur once that diagnosis is made, and all that really is healthy and normal and just speaks to the fact that at the end of the day people want to be proactive, they want to do whatever they can do to get themselves well again.

Why does cancer cause fatigue?

Fatigue. The moment you hear the word cancer, most people will get fatigued. They were fine when they walked in, and then you say, “I hate to tell you this, but you've been diagnosed with cancer.” The fatigue as if they'd just run a marathon kicks in. I guess what I'm trying to say is I don't think it's all physical. In fact, I think the physical component may be, at times, the smaller component of it. This is a mentally draining process. Trying to separate what component of it is truly my body and what component is what you're going through mentally is very difficult. It is true that people are fatigued, these treatments drain you. You lose a lot of nutrients, you lose a lot of energy, your calorie intake is low, you're not sleeping well, and you're in pain. It's very difficult to make it through these cancer treatments. Having said all that, I still think that the majority of the fatigue is not the physical component as much as it is the mental component. I have some personal experience with this, and I have felt fatigue at times myself, so I know it's really more my mind than it is the actual physical fatigue of my muscles.

Will my hair fall out from my cancer treatment?

Yes, for everyone that's the big question. You say, "You've got cancer and you're going to have these treatments." They want to know, "Well, is my hair going to fall out?" Both men and women, especially men who are losing their hair already, want to know that question. Sometimes it will, sometimes it won't. Why? Depending upon the type of treatment you have, some of the medications, one of the side effects is hair loss. Some of them more so than others, so everyone's situation is going to be very different. You should ask your medical oncologist specifically, "Are the drugs that I'm taking likely to cause hair loss?" and they'll be best able to answer that question.

Will I be able to work during my cancer treatment?

If you've got a very physically demanding job, then it may be difficult. If you've had an operation, that may make it difficult, depending on what you do for a living. So, in generally, most people are able to work through at least part of their treatment. There are some that can work through the entire treatment. But almost everyone's able to at least work through some of the treatment.

How might cancer treatment impact my children?

Cancer, and the treatment of cancer, will have the type of impact on your children that you allow it to. If your children are brought into the full fold of what is going on with you and your treatments it will certainly bring to them the concept that their parents are mortal and that their time with their parents is not necessarily guaranteed or forever. This is going to be a personal decision. On the other hand, if the choice is to not bring them into complete knowledge of your treatment it may have little to no effect on them as children. It's going to be pretty much based upon how you and your family approach the introduction of the cancer and the treatment of the cancer as a family unit.

How will cancer treatment impact my sex life?

Cancer treatment and its impact on the sex life truly depends upon what type of cancer, and what type of treatment is rendered. For instance if you have prostate cancer which requires you to have a removal of the prostate, a radical prostatectomy, this could leave you impotent, this could leave you without the ability to have a normal sexual life. On the other hand, if you had cancer of your liver or colon, this may have little effect on your sex life as a whole, once your treatment is completely over. So I think it is going to really be dependent upon the site and the location of the tumor to begin with.

How will my cancer treatment impact my friendships?

Cancer and the treatment of it and its affect on friendship is usually remarkably positive. It tends to really flush out your true friends and allow you to weed out the ones that really never were your friends to begin with, I think. I have seen the best of relationships fall through these cancer treatments and I have also seen folks who were friends, who have known each other for 10-20 years and the moment the diagnosis of cancer came along for some reason, they forgot their cell phone number and they weren't able to reach these people any more. So, I think, it really has that effect of shining a light on the subject, so to speak. If you have got a good relationship, it is going to get stronger; and if you have got a truly weak relationship with a friend, it is going to get weaker.

How soon will I start to feel better after my cancer treatment is done?

Many people ask, "After I'm finished with therapy, when do I start getting back to normal, when am I the normal me?" Interestingly, the 'me' you see in the mirror is going to return to normal before the rest of you. Your hair will start coming back about a month after the end of your last cycle, and your energy will start to return, but again each person is different. I've had some people go back to work even a month after finishing their last cycle of chemotherapy, and they've told me that's more for their mental health rather than anything else. Other people will take up to a year to feel back to normal, and still others will say that for a period of 2 to 3 years they are slowly improving but not back to their normal selves. So it is different for every person, you should gradually increase your activity as you tolerate more, don't be discouraged when it doesn't come back immediately, and realize that for most people they will return to normal, it just takes a different amount of time for each person.