Newly Diagnosed
A cancer diagnosis can make it hard to know what deserves your attention first.
We suggest you begin with what matters right now.
You can take an active role in your healthcare by learning what you need as you go, asking questions when something isn’t clear, and keeping what matters to you part of the conversation.
You don’t need a perfect plan. What matters is finding a place to start.
What matters right now?
Choose what would be most useful to you right now.
Understand what’s happening
Make sense of the information in front of you and identify what you still need to understand.
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Prepare for what comes next
Get ready for appointments, questions, and the decisions immediately ahead.
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Think about what matters to you
Keep your priorities, daily life, and the people you trust part of the conversation.
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Learn from people who’ve been there
Hear how others navigated uncertainty and found their own way forward.
Explore →Understand what’s happening
Start with what you need to understand now.
A cancer diagnosis can introduce a lot of new information at once. You may not need to understand all of it right away. Start with what you need now, and ask when something isn’t clear.
For us, understanding more has helped us participate more actively in Scott’s care.
One place to begin
Read Your Medical Records
Sometimes the record tells you something no one on your care team has.
Reading Scott’s medical records has changed the course of our cancer journey more than once. It helped us discover his recurrence, and later helped Scott find information that led him to ask about a targeted treatment option.
Watch
Hear what happened when we read the record
We share why reading the record became part of our care—and what it helped us notice.
Watch the conversation →
Use | Practical Guide
Try the approach we’ve learned to use
Review what was documented, notice what is unclear, and prepare what you want to ask.
Open the Practical Guide →The Report That Changed Everything
Four and a half years after surgery, one sentence in a radiology report showed that Scott’s cancer had returned. No one had told us.
Read the Reflection →Prepare for what comes next
A little preparation can make the next conversation easier.
You do not need to anticipate every decision. Start with the next appointment and what would help you leave with a clearer understanding of what comes next.
Before your next appointment
Write down what you want to leave understanding.
- What do I want to ask?
- What do I want to understand?
- What happens next?
Watch
Take an Active Role in Your Healthcare
We talk about participating in your care without feeling responsible for becoming the medical expert.
Watch the conversation →Read | Reflection
You Don’t Have to Become Your Own Doctor
Your healthcare team brings medical expertise. You bring your values, experiences, goals, and questions.
Read the Reflection →Related practical help
Read Your Medical Records
Review what was documented, notice what is unclear, and prepare what you want to ask next.