It’s important for all of us to remember that our emotions will run even higher than usual at this time of year. Once we know our feelings and have allowed ourselves time and space to feel them, then we can decide if we want to try to change how we are feeling.

There are still a handful of people at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center who were here when a duck pond welcomed patients near the main entrance. Kelley Watson, BSN, RN, is one of them.

“Our main focus is to evaluate patients who may have inherited forms of cancer, where it would make a difference in the management of their disease or the management of their family’s risk,” says Joseph F. Maher, MD.

“We want to go from 70% of lung cancers being diagnosed when surgery is not an option to 70% diagnosed when most can be,” Dr. Reid says.

If the patient’s cancer didn’t respond to chemotherapy and radiation, options were limited other than a wait-and-see approach. But new research has found that the introduction of an immunotherapy medication can dramatically improve their response. 

If you find the idea of injecting yourself to be stressful, keep in mind the benefits: it can free you from repeated trips to the doctor’s office and associated co-pays.

For many types of pediatric cancers, the treatment that helps save a child’s life might also cause lifelong challenges. A revolutionary new kind of therapy might change all that.

I use my knowledge of the mind and behavior to support people who are dealing with a medical illness; in this case, cancer.