It's not just you that goes through cancer; it's your whole family that goes through cancer.
Terri was diagnosed with breast cancer when her son Ben was 16 years old.
Listen to Terri talk about why it was important to tell Ben the truth about her cancer diagnosis — and why it might have been helpful to tell him sooner than she did.
Listen to Terri explain how her experience with cancer affected her family. She offers advice about keeping everyone well informed along the way.

Welcome to Telling Kids About Cancer: A Support Tool for Parents. Telling children about a cancer diagnosis can be overwhelming for any parent. This tool will support you every step of the way.

Step 1
Prepare for the conversation.
Step 2
Talk with your child.
Step 3
Follow up with your child.
Create a conversation guide for your talk.
Hear more stories.

As a parent, it’s normal to want to protect your child from bad news. At first, you might think it’s better not to share the news that you have cancer with your child. But keeping your illness a secret will be difficult — and it may not be best for your child. 

Read more about why it’s important to talk with your child about your cancer.

In each section of this site, you’ll find stories about real families dealing with cancer. You can listen to other parents talk about how they shared the news of their illness with their children — and how their children reacted. These stories can help you prepare to talk to your own children about cancer. 

The tool also includes:

Family
Kathy & Natalie

Kathy, a single parent with 3 teenagers, was diagnosed with colon cancer.

Listen to Kathy talk with her daughter Natalie about that day and what she was thinking when waiting for her children to arrive at the hospital.

I remember thinking to myself, when you guys walk up here and come into this hospital room, I don't want you to be scared.