Books about cancer

This book about cancer diagnosis was developed in 2022 in partnership with Young Lives vs Cancer, another charity that supports young people.  

Who is Your Diagnosis for? 

Your Diagnosis is for anyone between 13 and 24 years old who has just been diagnosed with cancer. 

What’s in Your Diagnosis? 

There’s lots of practical information in the book for young people who have just been diagnosed. There’s tips on how to talk about your cancer, what to expect from staying in hospital and finding out who you might meet in hospital. You can also find out more about what side effects you might experience, the mental health support available, and information on work and education. 

There’s also lots of tips included throughout on where you can find more information, if you’d like it.  

How was Your Diagnosis developed? 

Your Diagnosis have been developed by young people, for young people. We worked with young people with cancer throughout the process and we asked them to share their tips for other young people with cancer. This means you can find really useful tips throughout the book on all the different aspects of being diagnosed with cancer.  

We also worked with healthcare professionals who work with young people with cancer to understand more about which topics we should be covering in the book.  

Where can I get a copy of Your Diagnosis? 

You can ask your healthcare team for a copy or you can order a physical copy here or by emailing us on [email protected]. 

You can download a PDF version here: 

Our main information book about cancer is called Your Guide to Cancer. It was published in 2023 and was developed with support from young people with cancer and the healthcare professionals who work with them.  

This is an update of our previous book, called A Young Person’s Guide to Cancer. The book is split into five sections: your diagnosis, your treatment, your feelings, your life outside hospital and your life after treatment. 

Who is Your Guide to Cancer for?  

This book is for any young person between 13-24 with a cancer diagnosis. You might also like to share it with your friends and family if they have any questions or if they’d like to understand more about your diagnosis and treatment. 

What’s in Your Guide to Cancer? 

These sections cover lots of different topics including understanding the tests and types of treatment you might have, tips on how to deal with the emotions you might be feeling, understanding how cancer might affect relationships with friends and family and also the impact on your education and work life. It also covers some detail on what expect when you finish cancer treatment. 

We’ve included diagrams in the guide which will hopefully help you understand some of the tests and treatments you might have. We have also included quotes from other young people with cancer who have very kindly shared their stories and experiences of their own cancer diagnosis and treatment.  

How was Your Guide to Cancer developed? 

We worked with lots of different people to make sure this book was as useful as it can be for young people with cancer. We spoke to young people who have had their own personal cancer diagnosis to find out what information to include and what the book should look like.  

We also spoke to lots of healthcare professionals who work with young people with cancer, this includes nursing staff and Teenage Cancer Trust Youth Support Coordinators as well. They helped us with all the complicated medical information and making sure we covered all the topics we needed to and helped us make sure it was written in a way that is easy to understand.  

How do I use Your Guide to Cancer? 

There’s no set way to use this book, you can do whatever works best for you. Some people might want to read through it bit by bit, you might want to read the whole thing or you might want to keep it somewhere safe and look through it whenever feels right for you.  

There’s also a notes section at the back of the guide. You can use this however you want too. You might want to write down any questions you have for your care team or make notes during appointments. It can be a good way to keep track of extra information you’re given by your doctors or nurses.  

Where can I get a copy of Your Guide to Cancer? 

We have digital and printed copies of the guide – you can use whichever you find more useful.  

You can ask your healthcare team for a copy or you can order a physical copy here or by emailing us on [email protected]. 

You can download a PDF version here: 

Your Life After Treatment was released in 2024 for all young people who have been diagnosed with cancer or have had cancer treatment between the ages of 13-24.  

Who is Your Life After Treatment for? 

This book is for anyone who had cancer as a young person who has now finished the majority of their treatment. Like with Your Guide to Cancer, some people might find this a useful tool to help explain more about their cancer experience to friends and family, or when meeting new people. 

What’s in Your Life After Treatment? 

Your Life After Treatment has three sections: Your end of treatment summary, What you need to know and Your Space. 

Your end of treatment summary: this section offers young people the chance to keep all the important information about their treatment, diagnosis and follow-ups in one place that’s easy to access.  

What you need to know: this section summarises lots of the key information useful for young people finishing treatment. This includes: late effects, returning to education/work, applying for benefits and much more. 

Your space: this section is free space for young people to use as they wish. We’ve made some suggestions of how you might like to use this space, based on what other young people told us, but ultimately this space is for you to do what you want!  

How was Your Life After Treatment developed? 

As with all of our information, we have worked really closely with young people and frontline staff on the development of this book. More than 200 young people have been involved in outlining topics that needed to be covered, inspiring and feeding back on initial design concepts and supporting with writing the foreword. This includes young people on our current and previous Youth Advisory Group as well as young people who attended our previous Find Your Sense of Tumour event. Frontline staff have also been crucial to the development of the information in this book, as well as the structure and overall concept.   

How do I use Your Life After Treatment? 

You can use this book in whatever way is the most useful for you. The book has been designed to be personalised, so you can do whatever makes sense for you!  

We’d love to know how you use your book – tag us on Instagram @teenage_cancer! 

Where can I get a copy of Your Life After Treatment? 

You can ask your healthcare team for a copy or you can order a physical copy here or by emailing us on [email protected]. 

You can download a PDF version here: