One in four employees will be diagnosed with cancer. And besides the physical and emotional toll that can take, you may also face the challenge of balancing the affects on your job.
One expert... along with a breast cancer survivor... have some advice for working through the process.
After a cancer diagnosis, experts say come up with an action plan. Talk to your doctor about how much time you're going to need away from work after surgery and during treatment.
Then, you can go armed with that information to your employer, and work through it together.
But even when you head back to work, things are bound to be different.
"You're the same person you were before a cancer diagnosis, so you want to be true to who you are. If you're the type of person who tells everything about your weekend first thing Monday morning, well that's the same person you're going to be now, so be open and share as much as your feel comfortable, but if you keep your personal things closer to the vest, than you maybe just want to share some details. They key is to be true to yourself and realize everyone reacts differently to a cancer diagnosis," says Kate Sweeney, Executive Director of "Cancer and Careers."
According to one breast cancer survivor, who continued her teaching career after diagnosis, Sometimes the best medicine is a good attitude.
"It was my positive attitude that got me through it, you know, my family and friends, my wonderful support staff at work and just having a good attitude about it," says 37-year-old Tammy Zeller.
You can find more resources on a new website http://www.cancerandcareers.org/
