Submit questions for a video resource library

[Radha_KCA]

Greetings!

I’m seeking your suggestions for common questions about kidney cancer that you should ask your oncologist, surgeon, nurse, or other healthcare provider. The Kidney Cancer Association is planning to develop a resource library featuring clinicians and nurses answering common kidney cancer questions in brief videos. We will be interviewing several clinicians and nurses during the International Kidney Cancer Symposium in November. So, what would you like to know? And what would you advise others to ask about:

•Diagnosis

•Surgery

•Drugs/treatments

•Side effects

•Quality of life

•Caregiving

•Finances

Some example questions: What should I ask about before surgery? What is palliative care and when should I ask about it? Will my doctor be offended if I want a second opinion?

Please share your thoughts on these and any other topics in a comment below, I look forward to reading them. Although not every question may be included as part of the video library, your interests will help us plan more and better patient education materials. Thank you very much!

Radha Chitale

Communications Director, KCA

[greg1976]

•Diagnosis

- Is there someone or someplace I can connect with others that have gone through the same thing? (That was a big question for me, real-life experience.)

•Surgery

- What is the expected recovery timeline of the operation until discharge? What activities would typically be limited and for how long? Should you purchase special equipment for after surgery, like we ended up buying a wedge pillow to elevate me after I returned home. It was difficult to find and would have been nice to have when I returned from the hospital.

•Drugs/treatments

- What are the short and long term effects on the body for this treatment? What are the long term effects of repeated CT scans on the body?

•Side effects

- What steps can I take to mitigate the side effects of the treatment? What have others done to help with side effect and where can you purchase these items?

•Quality of life

- What could I reasonably expect my life to look like in the short term and long term?

•Caregiving

- What assistance can be provided to help with giving the caregiver a break? Is there any assistance to provide caregiving services? Where can the caregiver go to talk to other caregivers and give and receive support?

•Finances - What is my life going to look like in the future? Should you submit an application for Social Security Disability and if so, when? What assistance is out there to help navigate the process or look for options? Is there any financial assistance for the treatment? Financial stability was a big one for me and wondering what would happen with my family should I not survive.

[Radha_KCA Partner in reply to greg1976]

Thank you for your suggestions!