Supporting someone with cancer is no simple task. It requires resilience, patience and compassion, but the benefits and rewards felt by the cancer patient and their loved ones are worth every ounce of effort.
No one should face cancer alone. And no caregiver should bear the burden of care alone. It takes a team to properly support someone with cancer.
If someone you love is facing mesothelioma cancer, there are a number of things you can do to support and help them. Learning about the diagnosis, being empathetic and offering to help are some of the ways you can support someone with mesothelioma.
Knowledge Is Power
The old adage is true: The more you know, the more empowered you feel. Learning about mesothelioma and how it is treated will prepare you for what may lie ahead.
Many people diagnosed with mesothelioma qualify for multimodal therapy, which combines two or more anti-cancer treatments to improve effectiveness. Surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy are the go-to treatments for mesothelioma. Surgery removes tumors, chemotherapy attacks cancer cells throughout the body, and radiation therapy shrinks tumors.
Clinical trials are testing innovative therapies, like immunotherapy and gene therapy, on mesothelioma, and some of the results are encouraging. Certain patients are living several years beyond the typical one-year survival rate, and a select few are living five years and longer.
Practice Empathy
Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. Many cancer patients find themselves surrounded by people who can’t handle the feelings that cancer brings up.
Cancer patients not only struggle with their own feelings, but also struggle with feeling emotionally isolated. They worry that sharing their feelings will burden their loved ones. Bottling up emotions can lead to emotional distress, which stresses the body and mind.
Loved ones can practice empathy by placing themselves in their loved one’s shoes. Imagine what it would feel like for them and see if you can sense ways you could help. Often, just being present and holding space for their emotions to be accepted and understood is profoundly healing.
Find Ways to Help
If you want to help out, don’t simply ask if you can help. Many people value their independence and feel uncomfortable listing things they need help with.
Try to avoid saying, “Let me know if there’s anything I can do,” because most people won’t let you know since they don’t want to burden others.
Make specific offers to help, such as offering to:
- Pick up groceries for them when you go grocery shopping
- Make a meal and drop it off
- Do chores around the house
- Drive them to medical appointments
- Help run errands
- Join them on walks or visit simply to spend time together
Remember to take time for you. Being a caregiver to someone with cancer is challenging, on both physical and emotional levels. Carve out time to process your feelings and practice relaxation techniques like deep breathing, visualization and meditation. Nurturing your health and wellness will enable you to better support your loved one with cancer.
Sources:
American Society of Clinical Oncology. (2015, October). Supporting a friend who has cancer. Retrieved from http://www.cancer.net/coping-with-cancer/talking-with-family-and-friends/supporting-friend-who-has-cancer
American Cancer Society. (2015, February 5). Offering support to someone with cancer. Retrieved from http://www.cancer.org/treatment/understandingyourdiagnosis/talkingaboutcancer/whensomeoneyouknowhascancer/when-somebody-you-know-has-cancer-offering-support
Macmillan Cancer Support. (n.d.). Talking about cancer. Retrieved from http://www.macmillan.org.uk/information-and-support/coping/talking-about-cancer/if-someone-has-cancer