What do you do or say to a person who was just diagnosed with cancer?!

I was diagnosed with skin cancer, I guess to most seems like the least of all cancers!. But, at age 24 it was the scariest moment of my life, I don't even remember the drive home from the doctor!.!.!.The best thing that was done for me/said to me during that moment in my life was that from my best friend!. She cried and really showed me her true emotions!. She told me she is going to be there right with me 100percent of the way!. My mom told me, I was going to face some huge challenges emotionally, but that she knew I was strong enough to handle it!.!.!.

Basically, anything positive and uplifting!. :) Show your true colors, tell them your sad, your sorry!. Www@Answer-Health@Com

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What I would say truly depends on what type of cancer and how advanced it may be!. Cancer is a general term for a couple hundred different diseases, and there are many stages of the different types!.

I've been in this situation many times as the cancer doctor and also as the husband of a person diagnosed with cancer!.

For my patients, I explained the situation and the options we had for treatment along with realistic expectations - hoping always for a positive outcome!. Notwithstanding the first answer above, a cancer diagnosis in the USA is associated with over a 50% cure rate overall - - BUT, knowing the type and stage of the specific type of cancer allows a much better assessment of the seriousness and the odds faced!.

With my wife - who had a very rare type of cancer - the first thing I said was "let's find out as much as we can about this and decide the best way to deal with it!." Of course I was not her doctor - my partner handled her care!. Learning about a disease takes away some of the "fear of the unknown" aspect of the situation!. Our fears often exceed the reality of the situation!. The word "cancer' is not always a death sentence!.

Here are the five year survival data from the ACS 2008
[American Cancer Society - - Note that five year survival does not necessarily or always mean a

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