10 ways to support someone during cancer treatment
It can be disorienting to receive the news of a cancer diagnosis. As a friend or family member, you may want to support someone during this trying time. But where do you start? There are many thoughtful and creative ways to help someone during cancer treatment.
You may offer emotional support. Alternatively, you may consider financial support for cancer patients through fundraising on online platforms like GoFundMe. This guide explains how to support someone with cancer and help cancer patients manage daily life during treatment.
Why is it important to support someone going through cancer treatment?
Cancer treatment depends on the type of cancer. It may include surgery alone or a combination of radiation, chemotherapy, and other advanced options. Some of the treatment options, like chemotherapy, weaken the immune system, making it difficult to fight infections. It can cause fatigue and other side effects like nausea, pain, hair loss, and lack of appetite.
During the course of treatment, friends or loved ones with cancer can feel anxious, depressed, and isolated. Meanwhile, the American Cancer Society reports that cancer patients paid $5.6 billion out of pocket for cancer treatment in 2020 alone.
Still, research suggests that cancer patients who have a strong support system have better outcomes. Support for friends or loved ones with cancer can be financial, but it can also be giving your time and energy toward helping cancer patients stay healthy. Your support can help someone during cancer treatment cope with stress and anxiety, boosting their quality of life and wellbeing.
10 ways to help someone during cancer treatment
Wondering how to support someone with cancer? We’ve compiled a list of thoughtful and creative ways you can offer support for friends, family, and loved ones battling cancer.
1. Thoughtful gifts
Gifting someone going through cancer treatment shows them that you’re thinking of them. It lifts your friend or loved one’s spirits. Plus, you can send gifts even when you’re far away.
It doesn’t have to be expensive, only thoughtful. Here are some ideas:
- Creative handmade crafts you can make yourself, like a card or a painting
- Favorite snacks
- Gift cards
- Inspiring books, journals, and notebooks with affirmations
- Entertainment gifts like streaming subscriptions, board games, or puzzles
- Practical cancer care gifts that ease side effects from chemotherapy, like fragrance-free, oncology-safe creams, cooling agents, soft blankets and clothing, warm socks, and insulated water bottles.
- Self-care package containing unscented skincare, beauty products, and lotions
2. Helping cancer patients around the house
Cancer patients can be fatigued and have less energy to keep up with day-to-day tasks around the house. So, consider helping someone during cancer treatment in whatever way you can. These are some practical ways you can be of help:
- Mowing the lawn
- Gardening
- House sitting
- Cleaning
- Feeding and walking the dog
- Running errands
3. Cook meals or set up meal trains
In addition to fatigue, cancer patients lack appetite from chemotherapy. Yet, they need to maintain a healthy diet to help with recovery. Thus, you can inquire about the healthy meals they like, offer to cook and store the excess in the freezer.
Alternatively, you can set up meal trains and bring in the support of the local neighboring community around you. It also helps to shop for groceries so there’s always food in the house.
If you’re unable to cook meals, you can order takeout and have it delivered to their house. The same for groceries, where you can have them delivered routinely. Or buy gift cards for deliveries or Door Dash.
4. Keep them company
Visiting loved ones during cancer treatment and recovery goes a long way to ease their anxiety. You don’t have to say anything; you can just listen, offer your help with anything they may need, or just sit with them through a movie, reading a book, or solving a puzzle.
It’s important to ask before visiting. Also, be mindful of how long you stay with your loved one, as they may be fatigued and need time to rest.
On the days that you’re unable to visit, you can always send an encouraging text or call or simply keep in touch.
5. Organize an offline fundraiser
While health insurance may cover cancer treatment, the out-of-pocket cost of chemotherapy can add up to $8,000 to $50,000 per treatment cycle. One way you can help someone during cancer treatment to offset the balance is by organizing an offline fundraiser.
You can explore a lot of fun and creative ideas for helping cancer patients raise money:
- Plan a charity event like a concert, marathon, karaoke night, bowling, or hiking
- Auction, yard sale, bake sale, or book sale
- Community events like car washes, tree planting, or cook-offs
- Organize a themed event with attendees wearing pink
- Offer workshops or yoga classes
- Partnerships with restaurants
- Gaming livestreams
6. Raise money online
To reach more people, you can raise money online through GoFundMe. It allows you to post photos and video updates of the progress of treatment and receive words of encouragement. Make sure to share your fundraiser online, promoting it as well among your friends, family members, and work networks.
7. Drive them to appointments
Although it depends on the cancer and specific treatment, cancer treatments can take three to six months per cycle. Considering the toll it can have on the body, you may offer to drive cancer patients to and from appointments.
You can offer to keep your friend or loved one company through the minutes or hours, sometimes several days, it takes for each session. Moreover, you can pick up their medication and help organize it for them.
Beyond cancer treatment, you can offer to drive friends or family members to future scans and checkups. They may be strong enough to drive themselves, but your presence may provide emotional support and help ease their anxiety.
8. Organize a self-care day
When a friend or loved one is feeling better, you can surprise them with a self-care day. It can be anything special, from massages, a night-out, or a weekend vacation with their spouse or partner. For peace of mind, you can offer to babysit the kids while they’re away.
9. Provide emotional support
It may be tricky to know the emotional support a cancer patient needs. Often, it’s enough to sit with a friend or loved one and enjoy conversations with them. You can simply show empathy and listen to what they’re going through.
Your friendship or relationship shouldn’t change after a cancer diagnosis. You can still enjoy the same hobbies and shows. You can still talk like you used to, sharing jokes and laughter. Yet, stay mindful of your friend or loved one’s mood and give them the space they may need.
These are ways you can offer emotional support for cancer patients:
- Listen
- Acknowledge your friend or loved one’s emotions
- Talk about normal conversations
- Don’t assume you know how they feel
- Check in and keep in touch through calling or texting
- Ask if you can visit
- Respect their space and privacy
- Offer help with anything they may need
- Explore support groups together
- Encourage them
- Pray for them if you’re religious
- Remember to take care of your own well-being
10. Helping cancer patients with childcare
Besides helping friends or family members around the house, you can help someone with childcare during their cancer treatment. It comes with a lot of responsibility, and you can help take some of it off your friend or loved one’s shoulders.
Some ideas include babysitting, helping prepare the kids for school, getting them dressed, and packing their lunches. You can also offer to drive them to and from school and organize playdates or extracurricular activities to take their minds off the situation.
Start providing cancer support today
It’s tough to know what to say or do when a friend, family member, or loved one is diagnosed with cancer. Launching an online fundraiser on GoFundMe is helpful when the medical bills increase significantly.
However, there are a lot of thoughtful ways to support someone with cancer, from cooking healthy meals to helping them around the house and checking in with them through phone calls and encouraging text messages.