Teenage cancer: how to support my son

My sons girlfirned who is 18 has stage four cancer and has not responded to tratement.Her prognosis is poor.Trying to talk to teenagers at best of time is very difficult but I am finding it terribly hard to talk with my son about how this is impacting him.Any advice appreciated.Thanks in advance.

  • Hello Angelamary and a warm welcome to Cancer Chat, 

    I am so sorry to hear this - it's so sad that your son's girlfriend has been diagnosed with stage four cancer at such a young age and that she has not responded to treatment. I can imagine this is really hard for him and as you said trying to talk to teenagers is so hard already at the best of times so it must be incredibly difficult for you to find the right words to talk to your son. Other members of our community may have been in this difficult situation before and hopefully they will be along shortly with tips on how to reach out to your son as he is facing these incredibly hard circumstances. 

    It may also be worth getting in touch with the Teenage Cancer Trust who may have some insight into what you are facing at the moment and some good suggestions for you to help you support your son. Feel free also to get in touch with our nurses if there is anything you would like to talk through with them and they may be able to point you in the right direction - you can call them on this free number 0808 800 4040 - their line is open Monday to Friday from 9am to 5pm. 

    This is such a sad situation and one that not many teenagers have to face and it sounds like you are very supportive and showing him that you are there for him if he needs to talk. 

    I will now let some members of our community come and say hello and share their experience with you. I hope you won't mind but I've sligthly changed the title of your thread so that it can be spotted by others who've been in a similar situation easily. 

    Best wishes, 

    Lucie, Cancer Chat Moderator