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.

More than 30,000 medical professionals who treat people with cancer are meeting at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s (ASCO’s) Annual Meeting May 29 to June 2 in Orlando, Florida, where nearly 4,000 new research studies are being featured. What should patients know about this meeting? To find out, Cancer.Net talked with Richard L. Schilsky, MD.

Immunotherapy (also called biologic therapy or biotherapy) is a type of cancer treatment that uses the body's immune system to fight cancer. There are several types of immunotherapy, including monoclonal antibodies, non-specific immunotherapies, and cancer vaccines.

Personalized medicine involves selecting treatments based on a person’s unique genetic makeup and the genetic makeup of the tumor. By performing more genetic tests and analysis, doctors may customize treatment to each patient’s needs.

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.

A multigated acquisition (MUGA) scan checks to see if your heart is pumping blood properly. Some people with cancer receiving chemotherapy may need to have this test during their cancer treatment.