Keeping good medical records

After treatment is finished, you and your child may want to put the experience behind you as much as you can. Someday your child will be on his or her own and have new doctors. It is important that you or your child be able to give the new doctors the exact details of the cancer diagnosis and treatment. Gathering the details soon after treatment may be easier than trying to get them at some point in the future. There are certain pieces of information you should keep copies of and see that your child's doctors have, even into adulthood. These include:

• A copy of the pathology reports from any biopsies or surgeries.
• If surgery was done, a copy of the operative report.
• If your child was in the hospital, a copy of the discharge summaries that doctors prepare when patients are sent home.
• A list of the final doses of each drug your child had. (Certain chemo drugs have specific long-term side effects. If you can get a list of these from the pediatric oncologist, this would also help any new doctor.)
• If radiation was given, a final summary of the dose and field.

It is also very important to keep your child's health insurance. Tests and doctor visits cost a lot, and even though no one wants to think of the cancer coming back, this could happen.