How to Care for Someone Living With Breast Cancer | HealthInfi

A breast cancer diagnosis doesn’t affect just one life. It can flip the lives of family and friends upside down, so it’s important to guide not only the patient but also loved ones through this difficult time. The patient’s friends and family play a crucial role in recovery and beyond. It’s up to them to create a circle a care, which will provide a sense of optimism and comfort for the patient, and it’s up to health care providers to guide them through this process.

Creating a Breast Cancer Circle of Care: Steps to Share With Patient’s Friends and Family

Step 1: Designate a Care Leader

Have someone take the lead in organizing support. A friend or family member who is naturally organized can be the go-to person to delegate helpful tasks. Likewise, one person can offer to help communicate status updates to friends and family.

Step 2: Touch Base Regularly

Plan to stay in touch throughout recovery and beyond. Daily calls, weekly visits or regular emails will give the patient something to look forward to.

Step 3: Whip Up Some Recipes for Love

Food is fuel, and the patient will need the proper nutrients during this process. To help coordinate meal prep, you can use a service like Meal Train LLC, a free solution that simplifies the organization of giving and receiving meals. The site allows the giving party to take into account the recipient’s preferred meal times, food preferences and available days. This helps ensure that the recipient gets the meals they enjoy on the days that are most helpful.

Step 4: Treat This Diagnosis Separate From Others

Friends and family should refrain from telling stories about others with what they assume is a similar diagnosis. Every cancer diagnosis is different, and there are specifics that direct course of care. So often, newly diagnosed patients get overwhelmed withinformation and frightened by others’ stories. This diagnosis is unique for the patient in that it’s happening to them.

Step 5: Don’t Turn to Dr. Google

If you’re looking for more information on breast cancer and recovery, ask the oncology team for trusted resources. Some websites give inaccurate information and can steer you down a confusing road. HealthyWomen’s breast cancer center is a great place to start.

Living With Metastatic Breast Cancer

Metastatic breast cancer (also called stage IV or advanced breast cancer) is breast cancer that has spread beyond the breast to other organs in the body (most often the bones, lungs, liver or brain). In the U.S., it’s estimated that over 154,000 women have metastatic breast cancer .However, it’s not common (about 6 percent) to have metastatic breast cancer when you are first diagnosed (called de novo metastatic breast cancer).

Most often, metastatic breast cancer develops when the cancer returns at some point after the initial breast cancer diagnosis and treatment. This section discusses metastatic breast cancer treatment and care. You can also find information on support for you and your family. Such sites let people (or friends or family) build private or public communities where patient updates and schedules can be shared, says Broderick. Read More