As you embark on your journey, we would like to offer some simple advice that may assist you
Support Groups
Joining a cancer support group in your area can be very helpful. You will meet and associate with people traveling the same path as your own. They present an opportunity for you to discuss topics and situations that you might rather not talk about with family or friends. You will share many experiences in these groups and hear how others handled particular situations, some of which you may find pertinent.
It is our intention over time to list as many of these groups by area that we can. However, in the meantime query your oncologist or speak with your local hospital. They will be able to guide you to the most appropriate group in your area.
If you experience difficulties finding a group in your area please email us and we will try to assist.
Internet Guide
Never was the saying “all that glitters is not gold” more true than when applied to the Internet. Once upon a time the local town buffoon pulled his box into the town square and spread his ‘gospel’ much to the amusement of onlookers. Today they merely pull their chair up to the Internet and type their opinions into cyber space. Then there are the snake oil salesmen who prey on the desperate circumstances of others by offering bogus products that are no more than sugar pills.
The Internet abounds with opinions that the entire medical fraternity is corrupt and that they have cures for cancer but are not releasing them because of the economic impact on their industry. That would be one awfully large conspiracy and when you think about it, is laughable. However, the snake oil salesmen fuel this theory in an attempt to sow doubt in desperate minds and so enhance the sale of their theories and/or products.
Naturally, if you have cancer or are caring for someone with cancer, you will be desperate to find out more about it and explore ways which might assist in a recovery. There is nothing wrong with this as it can be quite comforting in that you feel you are doing something to help yourself. There are many Internet sites that can be very useful in providing you with very sound information. The trick is how to pick them. Unlike the local library the information is not nicely divided into fact and fiction but comes as one package. You need to separate the chaff from the wheat.
A good rule of thumb is, “If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is!” Try to be rational about someone in a third world country having stumbled across a miracle cure for cancer. Much as we would all like it to be possible, it is simply not plausible that after 50 years of research with billions of dollars being spent on the world’s best medical science facilities, we have all overlooked carrot juice or grape juice as a miracle cure for cancer.
When you come across a site of interest then adopt a negative approach. Research it by asking about the site – you guessed it – on the Internet. If the site claims research support or endorsement by respected bodies, such as universities, then check these out. Don’t be surprised if you are unable to locate the universities named on their site. If they refer to reports or statements from respected world bodies such as the World Health Organisation, then do look these reports up and ensure they exist and that the statement has not been misquoted or taken out of context.
If you come across something that you feel might be a genuine product or procedure then do discuss it with your Oncologist before making any commitments, financial or otherwise. After all, he has been in the industry a lot longer than you and probably has run across the same information with other patients or colleagues.
There are thousands of instances of families who have fallen on hard times financially by falling victim to these social parasites. Avoid the impulse to believe what you want to hear and take the time to do the painstaking research. The time and money you save will be worth it.
Feel free to email this site with anything you find and we will respond with any information we might have on it.
The Lynne King Cancer Care Foundation is a charity working to help those with cancer. It was formed in the memory of Lynne King, who as a nurse spent much of her life caring for those with cancer. 
