It’s been said that, “Cancer is not a death sentence, but rather it is a life sentence; it pushes one to live.” Those who have cancer are not only pushing to deal with the physical consequences of the disease but also with the attitudes and platitudes of others who may try to be helpful but can often wreak havoc with judgmental or ill-informed advice. As Jane Brody recently advised in her New York Times column, “What to Say to Someone With Cancer, what’s critically important is not to tell a person with cancer how she should feel or shower her with unrealistic predictions but rather to show non-judgmental support and your desire to help with specific contributions. And more than anything, it’s a time to shut up, listen and be present.

Older cancer patients, in particular, may not only be dealing with the consequences of their diagnosis but with a multitude of other age-related maladies. That can surely cause someone to struggle with maintaining a positive attitude about her situation. And that struggle could then be self-fulfilling. According to a new study published in Cancer Medicine, a person’s Self-Perception of Aging (SPA) can have a significant impact on mortality in the presence of a cancer diagnosis. The research found that those who tend to view their aging negatively are 3.66 x more likely to die than those with a positive SPA in the context of geriatric oncology. 

Attitudes can also be affected by knowing- or not knowing- your prognosis. There’s a new website, begun by one of the founders of Good Rx, that makes prognosis information more accessible to patients and families. Using public data gathered by the National Cancer Institute, the website- CancerSurvivalRates.com– is a free tool that tries to present accurate information in a way patients and families can use to further discussions with their physicians and within their families. For more on this new website, open your laptop and click here.

Finally, there are some bright spots on the horizon regarding cancer detection at the earliest stage possible. New developments using liquid biopsies (blood tests) are creating the potential for real progress when it comes to harnessing genetic information to detect cancer at its earliest stages and use that information to target cancer therapy to the specific profile of the patient. To learn more, read here and here.