Advice for Patients Newly Diagnosed With Lung Cancer

Establishing a support system is crucial for patients who are newly diagnosed with lung cancer, as an expert explained in a recent interview with CURE.

CURE spoke with Patricia I. Moreno, who holds a Ph.D. and is a licensed clinical psychologist and lead of evidence-based survivorship and supportive care at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Health System.

Moreno shared advice for patients who are newly diagnosed with lung cancer.

Transcript

What advice do you have for patients who are newly diagnosed with lung cancer?

Take care of yourself, ask yourself, “What is important to me right now?” and try to make decisions based on what your priorities are or what's important to you in your life. If you feel like you need more support, you can always get connected to psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, other mental health providers, and I would say just give yourself a lot of grace. It's a really stressful moment. It feels like the rug has been pulled out from under your feet. There's no one right way to cope with this moment. It's just about making sure you stay connected to yourself, connected to the things that make you who you are beyond this diagnosis and the treatment that you're maybe starting or coming down the pipeline, and then making sure that you really connect with the people who can show up for you.

So, some people are really good about giving you space to feel your emotions and to allow you to say what you need to say without editing it or without protecting them. And then other people feel more uncomfortable with someone showing a lot of emotion or feeling angry or sad and but maybe that person's really good at helping you with the pragmatic stuff, like organizing your meals or taking you to an appointment, or taking notes for you, or finding out insurance coverage things.

And so I would say, just be really mindful about who you trust for what type of support. That way you're not expending a lot of energy trying to manage how people are reacting around you to your stressful situation, but rather, you're able to get as much support from them that is helpful to you.

Transcript has been edited for clarity and conciseness.

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