My second thought. Cancer is a dreadful disease. But there are so many survivors in modern times who can take you through the treatment progression. A Deputy Clerk at the Supreme Court had undergone the treatment a year or so before I did. He spoke to me at intervals, not dousing me with too much at the start, but telling me just what I needed to know at each stage.
Honest previews can make the experience less intimidating.
And the support and encouragement of others buoy one's spirits. I received many letters from people cross the country last year. Third on my list. Medical science has made enormous progress since my husband had cancer in 1958. In those days, the word chemotherapy was not yet heard.