[Kim O'Therapy]

Good morning everyone,

I am a CNA and will be starting a job at MD Anderson soon. I have also applied to the UTMB BSN program and hope to start in the fall 2006 semester. Oncology has always held my interest and I'd like to ask you a few things, if you don't mind.

1) Do people get better? My mother was dx with a catastrophic form of breast cancer (IBC) in 2001. Her onc, by giving her the stats, basically told her most don't survive more than a year or two. Well, this is 2006, and although the Abraxine (sp?) wiped her out at one point - the mets to her lungs is now gone and she feels very good. Do these kinds of stories keep one dedicated to oncology? If not, what does?

2) When I worked on a med/surg floor, I did have a few ca pts.; however, do not have extensive experience dealing with this population. So, how do you keep a positive attitude with the pt. without coming across as artificial, or unrealistic (as to dx or life expectancy)?

Thanks for your time and attention.