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Emotional & Social Effects
Young people with cancer must also face emotional
and social challenges. They fear relapse and the
subsequent repetition of treatments. Emotional
energy normally used to master basic developmental
skills is now used to cope with the illness and
treatments. Teenagers experience the added
difficulty of gaining independence, which is so
important to their development, at a time when the
disease forces them to become dependent on parents
and care givers again. Young people must learn to
deal with others who treat them differently because
of their disease. Patients may withdraw, regress, or
become belligerent. Doctors must also pay attention
to the quality of life for the young person.
Although cancer patients have a serious illness,
they are still growing and developing and have the
same educational and social needs as peers. |
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