1. The prognosis that my doctor has given me is very different from the statistics that I am finding for my type of cancer. What is the difference?

2. I read about a treatment that sounds right for me but my doctor says that I am too old for it. How does age enter into this? I have kept myself in fairly good shape. 

3. I have been diagnosed with cancer. An initial indication was missed and it seems that I am now in stage II. What is next?

4. We were told that my husband's radiation treatments were working and then told that they were not. My husband subsequently committed suicide. Between my grief and loss and the bills coming in, I don't know where to turn.

5. Why is diagnosis of cancer so important?

1. The prognosis that my doctor has given me is very different from the statistics that I am finding for my type of cancer. What is the difference?

Statistics are almost always out of date because the field of cancer treatment and oncology is such a fast-moving field. Statistics are a mathematical compilation of what happened with treatments available at the time the statistics were printed. Prognosis is an individual prediction of the future course and outcome of a disease and it includes the likelihood of recovery from that disease. When a doctor discusses a patient's prognosis, they are making an educated guess as to the outcome of a disease for that individual patient. A favorable prognosis means that the cancer is expected to respond well to treatment. An unfavorable prognosis means the cancer is expected to be difficult to control.

2. I read about a treatment that sounds right for me but my doctor says that I am too old for it. How does age enter into this? I have kept myself in fairly good shape. 

Many factors are considered when treatment and therapy, such as radiation or chemotherapy, are prescribed for a patient:

• How quickly the cancer is growing; 
  
• The number, size and location of tumors; 
  
• Whether there has is been aspreading of the cancer to other organs; 
  
• The patient's age and general health. 
  

3. I have been diagnosed with cancer. An initial indication was missed and it seems that I am now in stage II. What is next?

Consult with as many doctors as you can in order to make an informed decision about your treatment choices. Make sure that your secondary opinions are from physicians who are trained in oncology and are at various medical centers.

Next, call us and give us the particulars about the delayed diagnosis. You may well have a legal claim. Our firm boasts 2 M.D./J.D.'s (lawyers who hold both medical and law degrees) and 4 Registered Nurses, two of who hold law degrees. We are well qualified to evaluate the damage this delay in diagnosis may have caused.

4. We were told that my husband's radiation treatments were working and then told that they were not. My husband subsequently committed suicide. Between my grief and loss and the bills coming in, I don't know where to turn.

Sadly, this is not uncommon. There are actually many reasons that cancer patients may commit suicide:

• Diagnoses of oral, pharyngeal, or lung cancer ; 
  
• Advanced stage of disease and poor prognosis; 
  
• Confusion/delirium;
  
• Poorly controlled pain and fears of painful death: 
  
• Physical impairments and indignities, such as loss of mobility, loss of bowel and bladder control, amputation(s), loss of eyesight or hearing and difficulty communicating, paralysis, inability to eat or swallow, or exhaustion.

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