Thousands of people every year find out they have cancer. Over half will have to go through some type of chemotherapy or radiation treatment. Both are extremely painful. Their appearance will change dramatically and their physical abilities will become limited. Just talking can and will become a chore. Although many physicians and specialist try to comfort and prepare each patient; it is those patients with children who find the whole experience tormenting. They fear for their children's future and how they will take the news. They're unsure of when and how to tell their children, especially those with younger children. Children who are of the ages of five and under. It is most difficult to explain to this age group because of their absence of understanding what it is they are being told. They have a limited vocabulary and lack the ability to grasp the seriousness of the situation. They do not understand that their parent maybe facing death. To them their parent is invincible. No one or thing could harm them. So it is up to their parent to explain everything in a way to where they will understand. Helping children five and under to understand their parents experience with

cancer needs sensitivity and a good sense of timing. Children may go through the stages their parents are going through, disbelief, anger, reorganization, hope and acceptance. They may have special needs because of their ages. During their parents illness, their needs may change. Children have the right to know about anything that affects the family, as cancer does. Children know something is wrong. If they are not told anything in a way to protect them, they may have fears which are -Page 2- worse than the real situation. They may find out the truth from someone else, or get misleading information from TV or other sources. Not talking about cancer may suggest it is a subject too terrible to be discussed. There is a hopeful side and children need to know this. The first step a parent should take before telling their children is to find out all the information they can about the cancer they have been diagnosed with. What makes cancer especially difficult are the many unknowns. Living with uncertainty is part of having cancer. A parent needs to find out all they can to make the unknown familiar. In order to provide accurate information and to be honest with their children the parent needs to be knowledgeable of their cancer. This way when their children asks a question they will be able to answer it. There are some questions they will not be able to answer. They must accept that and help their children to accept that fact also. Once the parent knows all that they can about their cancer then the next step is to quickly set aside a time in a comfortable place to explain their illness. Many parents feel comfortable in thinking that time is in abundance.

Some common words found in the essay are:
Cancer Thousands, Mommy Daddy, children children, parent cancer, cancer children, able answer, children especially, able cope, children five, children told, parent -page, step parent,
Approximate Word count = 1118
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)