After Diagnosis: A Guide for Patients and Families
TOPICS
- After Diagnosis: A Guidefor Patients and Families
- What is cancer?
- Who gets cancer?
- Did I cause my cancer?
- Can cancer be inherited?
- Why me?
- Am I going to die?
- How do I cope?
- How do I talk to people about my diagnosis?
- Making treatment decisions
- How is treatment planned?
- What should I ask my doctor?
- Will I have pain?
- Will I be able to work during treatment?
- Will I be able to exercise during treatment?
- How will cancer affect my sex life?
- How will I pay for all this?
- What other resources do I have?
- To learn more
Can cancer be inherited?
Though many people believe that cancer runs in families, cancer can’t be passed on from parent to child the same way that height and eye color are. While some cancers do have genetic risk factors, most people with cancer have not inherited the disease, nor do they pass it on to their children.
Last Medical Review: 03/08/2012
Last Revised: 01/25/2013
