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Our highly trained specialists are available 24/7 via phone and on weekdays can assist through video calls and online chat. We connect patients, caregivers, and family members with essential services and resources at every step of their cancer journey. Ask us how you can get involved and support the fight against cancer. Some of the topics we can assist with include:
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- Cancer Information
For medical questions, we encourage you to review our information with your doctor.
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- Immediate Treatment for Childhood Leukemia
- Surgery for Childhood Leukemia
- Radiation Therapy for Childhood Leukemia
- Chemotherapy for Childhood Leukemia
- Targeted Therapy Drugs for Childhood Leukemia
- Immunotherapy for Childhood Leukemia
- High-dose Chemotherapy and Stem Cell Transplant for Childhood Leukemia
- Treatment of Children with Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL)
- Treatment of Children With Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML)
- Treatment of Children with Acute Promyelocytic Leukemia (APL)
- Treatment of Children with Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia (JMML)
- Treatment of Children with Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML)
- If Your Child Has Leukemia
Questions to Ask About Childhood Leukemia
It’s important to have open, honest discussions with your child’s cancer care team. They want to answer all of your questions, no matter how small they might seem. For instance, consider these examples:
If leukemia has just been diagnosed
- What type of leukemia does my child have?
- How will the subtype of the leukemia or any other factors affect my child’s prognosis?
- Do we need other tests before we can decide on treatment?
- Will we need to see other doctors?
- How much experience do you have treating this type of leukemia?
- Who else will be on the treatment team, and what do they do?
When deciding on a treatment plan
- What are our treatment choices?
- What do you recommend and why?
- Should we get a second opinion? How would we do that? Can you recommend a doctor or cancer center?
- Should we consider a stem cell transplant? When?
- Are there any clinical trials we should consider?
- How soon do we need to start treatment?
- What should we do to be ready for treatment?
- How long will treatment last? What will it be like?
- How much of the treatment will need to be done in the hospital?
- How will treatment affect our daily lives (school, work, etc.)?
- What are the risks and side effects of the treatments you recommend?
- Which side effects start shortly after treatment, and which ones might develop later on?
- Will treatment affect my child’s ability to learn, grow, and develop?
- Will treatment affect my child’s future ability to have children?
- What are the chances of curing the leukemia?
During and after treatment
Once treatment begins, you’ll need to know what to expect and what to look for. Not all of these questions may apply, but getting answers to the ones that do may be helpful.
- What type of follow-up will we need after treatment?
- How will we know if the treatment is working?
- Is there anything we can do to help manage side effects?
- What symptoms or side effects should we tell you about right away?
- How can we reach you or someone on your team on nights, weekends, or holidays?
- Who can we talk to if we have questions about costs, insurance coverage, or social support?
- What will our options be if the treatment doesn’t work or if the leukemia comes back?
- Do you know of any support groups where we can talk to other families who have been through this?
Along with these sample questions, be sure to write down your own. For instance, you might want to ask about possible long-term risks of cancer or other health problems.
Also keep in mind that doctors are not the only ones who can give you information. Other health care professionals, such as nurses and social workers, may have the answers to some of your questions. You can find out more about speaking with your health care team in The Doctor-Patient Relationship.
The American Cancer Society medical and editorial content team
Our team is made up of doctors and oncology certified nurses with deep knowledge of cancer care as well as journalists, editors, and translators with extensive experience in medical writing.
Last Revised: February 12, 2019
American Cancer Society medical information is copyrighted material. For reprint requests, please see our Content Usage Policy.
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