When first told they have cancer, most people are in a state of shock. Suddenly, they must adapt to the unfamiliar world and language of cancer. There's a huge learning curve. The National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship, the Oncology Nursing Society and the Association of Oncology Social Work collaborated to create The Cancer Survival Toolbox . The Toolbox, free to cancer survivors thanks to a grant from Genentech BioOncology, is a set of three audiotapes focusing on the practical skills needed in daily life to manage cancer diagnosis and treatment.
Treatment is pretty debilitating.
The Toolbox gave me a positive foundation to work from. Communicating, Finding Information, Making Decisions, Solving Problems, Negotiating and Standing Up for Your Rights. We wanted to give people more than examples of others who made wise decisions or a theoretical approach to a situation. She was a member of the six-person team who spent more than a year researching and developing the tapes. Ovarian cancer survivor Ann Corber says the Toolbox increased her confidence in her decisions and helped her become an active partner in her care.