How to find what you are looking for
Welcome to the parents section of the Taking Charge: Managing Cancer Online Program. This resource centre is written mainly for the parents of teenagers who have cancer. The content of this resource centre has been organized to help guide you in helping your teenager to take charge of managing their cancer. The material in this section has been written with members of the Cancer Team at The Hospital for Sick Children and other health care organizations.
Introduction for parents
This session shows you how to navigate through the program. It explains your responsibilities, your teenager’s responsibilities, and the responsibilities of the research team in this clinical study. It describes the various parts of the program, including the education sessions that are available for you and your teenager, the social support available through teenager and parent discussion forums, the journal that is available for your teen, and the health coach, who will guide your teen through the various sessions. It will also help you to set some goals to work toward so your teenager can become more independent in managing their cancer.
The impact of cancer
Cancer does not just affect your teenager; it can have a major impact on the entire family. You as a parent may have feelings of guilt or other emotions that you need to work though. You might also worry about your teenager’s future and how to promote their independence. You may have other children who are jealous of the attention their brother or sister with cancer is receiving, and this can cause added stress. Cancer may impact your family in other ways, such as disrupting plans and shortening the amount of time you have left to spend with other family members. There are also financial issues to consider. This session offers tips on how to cope with stress and worry, how to help siblings manage their feelings, how to manage the overall impact of cancer on your family, and how to cope with financial stressors.
Letting go
This session will help you learn how to deal with common issues during the teen years, and how to promote your teenager’s growing independence. It includes learning strategies to help your teenager take more of a leading role in helping their health care team manage their cancer. In parallel, it describes how your role will change as your teenager gets older. It also goes through some of the newest studies on cancer in teenagers and describes your teenager’s role in research.
Please remember that this information should only be used as a guide. Every teenager’s situation is unique. If you have specific questions about your own teenager's care, please speak to their doctor.