For people diagnosed with cancer, an oncology social worker is an important member of the health care team. An oncology social worker provides counseling, education, and information services, and referrals to community resources to people with cancer and their families and friends.

Food safety is important for people who are receiving or recovering from cancer treatment. Foodborne illness (also called food poisoning) occurs when you eat food that has harmful bacteria, parasites, or viruses.

Keeping a journal is an easy way to express your feelings and document your journey, and research shows that people who write journals enjoy a range of health benefits.

For many people with cancer, connecting with others provides emotional support and inspiration during this challenging time.What might help is to join an online community where you can connect with others. Joining an online community also makes it easier to keep friends and family updated on your situation.

Counseling can be a way for someone to better understand and resolve a pressing issue or concern. Counseling can also help explore longstanding problems unrelated to the disease that may have come to the surface during the cancer experience. Read more ways that counseling can help people with cancer and those who care about them.

Whether you're a cancer survivor, or a family member or friend of someone living with cancer, you have a lot of valuable, first-hand experience on coping that can help other people with cancer and their families and friends. Consider becoming a volunteer for a cancer organization or another type of organization that interests you, or offer to help someone you know who is coping with cancer in your community.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) created the Managing the Cost of Cancer Care booklet to help patients start and guide conversations with their health care team about financial planning before, during, and after treatment. To learn more about this resource and what people with cancer should know, Cancer.Net talked with Lidia Schapira, MD.

An abstract is a summary of a research study that allows readers to quickly learn about the important aspects of a study. In medical journals, an abstract is usually presented at the beginning of the published article. Although the intended audiences for most abstracts are medical and scientific professionals, it is becoming more common for patients and their friends and family members to read abstracts while learning about cancer and researching treatment options.

Once a person has been diagnosed with cancer, it is natural to want to start treatment as quickly as possible. Often, the extra time needed to perform additional tests or obtain additional consultations may lead to anxiety that the delay will be harmful. It is important to understand, though, that taking the time needed for a thorough medical evaluation works to your advantage and does not hurt your chances of getting the best results from treatment.