Home → Day-to-Day Matters → Talking to Your Family and Friends About Breast Cancer → Ask-the-Expert Conferences: Family, Friends, Relationships → February 2007: Partners, Loved Ones, Caregivers: Taking Care of You → Help coping with a loved one's diagnosis?

Help coping with a loved one's diagnosis?

Page last modified on: October 16, 2008

Question from Darif: How do you not let a diagnosis of cancer rule your life? My mom was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer in August and since then I feel like my world is falling apart. How do you cope when someone you love so much is sick?: Answer —Rosalind Kleban, L.C.S.W.: A diagnosis of metastatic breast cancer is a crisis in anyone's life. This diagnosis is brand new. Hopefully, with time one will understand that it is not necessarily a death sentence, but a chronic illness. It is best for the patient and for the family to resume as normal a life as possible that is reassuring to both the patient and family. And with time, coping becomes somewhat easier, but never really easy. Cancer will become a big part of everyone's life.

On Wednesday, February 21, 2007, our Ask-the-Expert Online Conference was called Partners, Loved Ones, Caregivers: Taking Care of You. Author Marc Silver and moderator Rosalind Kleban, L.C.S.W. answered your questions about how you can take care of your loved one and yourself during and after breast cancer treatment.

The materials presented in these conferences do not necessarily reflect the views of breastcancer.org. A qualified healthcare professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product or regimen discussed. All readers should verify all information and data before employing any therapies described here.

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Meet the Experts

Marc Silver is the author of Breast Cancer Husband: How to Help Your Wife (And Yourself) Through Diagnosis, Treatment, and Beyond.

Rosalind Kleban, L.C.S.W. is administrative supervisor for psychosocial programs at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center's Lauder Breast Center in New York City, where she leads weekly support groups for women with early and advanced breast cancer.