Understanding Cancer

Understanding cancer allows you to better cope with and combat the condition. It's important to obtain information to help you understand cancer, what it is and how it is treated, as well as facts on how your medical plan covers cancer treatment.

This includes answers to first-step questions about cancer, understanding it's development, the variety of cancer classifications, prevalence and key signs and symptoms.

While knowledge is strength when it comes to a cancer diagnosis, there's so much misinformation out there, that it's hard to know what to believe. Your medical team will give you the facts as will reliable websites. (Be sure to check out a few recommended sites in the list below.)

There's such a massive amount of information about cancer online that it's hard to work out what's fact and what's fiction.

The problem is that anyone can upload their stuff for the world to read: professional medical people and institutions, cancer survivors, family and friends of people diagnosed with cancer, caregivers, people suggesting alternatives to traditional cancer treatment and, of course, the quacks. So when you're desperately searching for the answers you need, it's easy to become overwhelmed.

Before you read anything online and accept the information on offer, check out the credentials of the writer and the site on which it is published. Also, always tell your medical team about the information you have come across and ask them whether the information is current and correct. Remember that there are significant advances regularly being made in the cancer world today and that some of the information on the internet is outdated and not based on the latest research., Some sites claim to have the latest research or treatment methods butt they could be untested or unproven.

Always use a reputable source of information - such as those listed below - when it comes to searching for medical diagnoses and information about cancer treatment. If you want to read about other people's experiences of cancer treatment stick to their blog posts (bearing in mind that they are not medical professionals and that they're describing things based on their understanding and frame of reference.)

Credible online resources

Here are some credible local and international websites where you can find good information about cancer and cancer treatment (in no specific order):

General and medical

Support groups

Some of the sites for innovative patient support technology