When you are Diagnosed with a Terminal Illness

No one wants to hear a diagnosis of cancer. More often than not, people who are told by their doctor that they have a terminal illness go through a phase of denial when they are pretty sure the diagnosis is wrong –and sometimes they may be right. Going through cancer treatment is an act of courage. It is physically, emotionally and financially draining, not only for the patient, but for the family as well. Different types of cancer require different forms of treatment. It is therefore essential that the diagnosis is correct from the start.

Some inflammatory conditions can masquerade as brain tumours, making it difficult sometimes to tell them apart even a biopsy. The treatment for one is radically different from the treatment for the other, so the right diagnosis must be made before any treatment starts. Soft tissue tumours are also hard to differentiate. Benign masses can be so large and cause disturbing symptoms so akin to those of cancer that mistakes are not impossible.