Questions to ask your child’s medical team and hospital after cancer diagnosis

A cancer diagnosis for a child can be life altering , jarring, frightening and more but it’s important to ask the right questions before you enter into the world of childhood cancer treatments. Like every family starting out on this journey, you will be confused and in denial and that may lead you to less likely make sound decisions. Having gone through diagnosis of my child’s Neuroblastoma and still on the journey I’ve learned some things along the way and I definitely want to help other families who have to face this nightmare. So here are some questions you must ask your child’s hospital after a cancer diagnosis. Let’s dive right in….

Here are 7 questions to ask your child’s care team at the hospital after a cancer diagnosis

#1 What is your hospital’s cure rate? This is a great question to know because every hospital has a cure rate of a particular illness or disease that they have seen or treatment frequently. One of the hospitals my daughter was treated at told us without us asking that their cure rate was around 67 percent for Neuroblastoma. I’d say that isn’t too bad considering neuroblastoma’s track record. However, they did assure us that they are working hard to raise their cure rate and that was very good to hear and was encouraging.

#1 Have you(the doctor) and hospital treated this type of cancer before? This is an important question and specific. You are asking about the doctor’s experience with that kind of cancer and the hospital’s experience. This is the because the doctor could have seen and treated lots of patients with the same cancer but at a different hospital and the hospital may have not seen too many of these particular cases. You want the doctor as well as the hospital to have experience and successful outcomes for your child’s cancer. If they haven’t dealt with that kind of cancer frequently then the hospital may also not know how to address complications from treatments which your child has a very high chance of running into.

#3 What is your treatment protocol and if the standard of care doesn’t work for my child, are you willing to change course and do what’s best for my child? You’ve got to know this one! You want to know if they will cater to the needs of your child or if they have a one size fits all approach. Treatment protocols typically work for the average person but what if your child isn’t average. You need a team that is willing to take a step back and consider a different route that isn’t harmful to your child.

#4 Do you speak with other hospitals to get ideas and second opinions?

A good hospital and team will be more than willing to speak with other hospitals that may have more experience than them or access to medications that can be helpful and even life saving during treatment and lengthy hospital stays.

#5 Are all parts of the treatments done at this hospital? When my daughter was diagnosed the hospital was transparent up front and let us know that we will have to travel to another hospital for the other half of the treatment. We were willing to travel to the moon if it meant our child would bed okay, but traveling between two hospitals hours away may not be feasible to you and that’s something you need to know in the beginning.

#6 Do you have a good Pediatric Intensive care unit (PICU)that can manage heavy complications such as pulmonary hypertension and or RSV? When my daughter was having treatment at the second hospital she contracted RSV and ran into a very deadly complication. Thank God she pulled through, however if she was at the first hospital she may have not made it because they didn’t have the expertise or the medications that would help with her pulmonary hypertension that she developed from complications of RSV during treatment. She completed her second transplant and had no immune system and contracted RSV. Everyone says she is a miracle and that she is. Thank You God.

#7 What is your protocol for preventing or reducing human error while administering medications. Sorry to say this but lots of children have died from getting the wrong dose of chemo or morphine. You have to know what their protocol is, check and balance system, and ask what medication are they giving your child at the time. Take notes, have them talk it out step by step. My daughter was a victim of hospitals mistakes after she fought her way off the ventilator during her RSV complication. When they transferred her back to her home hospital, someone made a horrible mix up with the IV pumps that could have killed her. I rather not go into detail about that as it is still hard to accept and deal with but again God is good and we are glad she is ok. As for her kidney’s only time will tell. Make sure you know the importance of this question in order to keep your child safe!

I hope these tips were helpful and I will see you next time on Your daily educator!