QUESTION:

We are looking for any help in dealing with children with cancer. Our 2½ year-old granddaughter was diagnosed with neuroblastoma and has been undergoing treatment since July '96. Are there any books you could reccomend? The only one I have found is Jonathan Kellerman's 'Psychological aspect's of Childhood Cancer.' Is it worth ordering? Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Terry

JAN'S REPLY:

Hi Terry,

I'm so sorry to hear about this difficult situation.

Here are some web sites:

1. When a Child has Cancer (book review)
2. Worldwide Network for Children with Cancer
3. Physical Therapy and the Child with Cancer
4. "Talking with Your Child about Cancer"

There is a newsgroup that you could join: misc.kids.health. There are also two mailing lists:

1. CSHCN-L - Children with Special Health Care Needs
   For information, send an email to: listserv@nervm.nerdc.ufl.edu. Put this single line in the mail message: info CSHCN-L
   
2. DADVOCAT - Dads of Children with Disabilities or Special Health Needs
   For information, send an email to: listserv@lsv.uky.edu. Put this single line in the mail message: info DADVOCAT

Books:

1. Davis, Hilton. counseling Parents of Children with Chronic Illness or Disability. Leicester: BPS Books, 1993.
   
2. Sourkes, Barbara M. Armfuls of Time: the Psychological Experience of the Child with a Life-threatening Illness. Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 1995.
   
3. Bluebond-Langner, Myra. In the Shadow of Illness: Parents and Siblings of the Chronically Ill Child. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1996.

I have one other suggestion: raspberry leaf tea is a very soothing, healing, and beneficial drink, which can help your granddaughter to cope with medical treatment and other stress. There's a mail-order source for a superb quality, organically grown supply of raspberry leaf tea. The woman who grows and sells it is the editor/publisher of Compleat Mother magazine. She recommends freezing the tea in ice cube trays or popsicle molds as a healthful treat for children. She calls it an "ideal beverage for anyone in recovery". It can be ordered at $6.00 for 35 grams from this address: 

 
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