Newly Diagnosed

Hi Sam1

Welcome to the forum and sorry to hear that you have been diagnosed with Breast Cancer. While I don’t have any information in your query I noticed that you’ve had no answers yet so I thought I’d reach out to you so that you’d be bumped up to the top of the discussion list and hopefully someone will be along to give you the answer you are looking for. If not you could contact the Macmillan helpline and they will give you advice.

Wishing you the best of luck with your chemo.

Best wishes

Daisy53

Like Daisy53 I'm afraid I don't have any answers about teenagers, but there's definitely support out there. You may want to look at https://www.cancer.gov/publications/patient-education/when-your-parent-has-cancer  which is written for teenagers. And the Macmillan helpline may well be able to point you in the right direction if no-one here comes up with something better.  Hope you find what you need.

Wishing you all the best with what's to come xx

Hi

My boys were teenagers when I was diagnosed. I tried to keep things as normal as possible , having already thrown what felt like a hand grenade into their life my mission was to keep as low key as possible. My youngest son hated me having my long hair cut , and struggled with my bald head, but got used to it. I did say to them that I wouldn’t tell them everything (it can be boring as well as scary) but if they asked me questions I would answer them honestly. I was pretty much okay with chemo , so can’t say that affected things too much , I guess now with covid and the fear of infection , going out and about might be the hardest thing. 

I ended up with 5 breast operations , 2 as in-patient, and that upset them more than the chemo. Where possible we did laugh , I looked like a pirate with my scarves and soon ditched them , and we did laugh at me in them and my wig..,

Your local cancer charity will have support for children, and the kids school might also have some links to help groups, and as someone has mentioned Macmillan are a good starting point , there are some websites on here too  https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/coping/emotionally/support-for-children-whose-parents-have-cancer

And this might have some local groups

https://www.cancercaremap.org/?gclid=CjwKCAjw7fuJBhBdEiwA2lLMYf77va8iG1wh8VncxuiLuznvyBYX2-YzLE6VgagMU2CYMEiyQTd2ARoCgx8QAvD_BwE

5 years on and I have just finished a full peony tattoo covering my reconstructed breast , the kids think it is weird/horrifying that I have a tattoo and none of them do …

Good luck with the rest of your treatment 

Jo xx

Thank you x

Thank you xx