Myth No. 1: Death is inevitable

Most people, on hearing the word cancer, think it is a death sentence. But the facts tell a different story. About half of the individuals diagnosed with cancer survive. For particular cancers, the odds are even better that the disease will be cured. Predicting which individuals will do well and which ones will not do well can be difficult, however. Quite a few people live for many years with a cancer. It becomes a chronic condition that needs attention, somewhat like diabetes or heart disease. For this reason, many cancer patients focus on living with cancer.

For more information, read "Life With Cancer," a Health Talk & You article published by the University of Minnesota Academic Health Center.

Myth No. 2: Cancer is always painful

Cancer is not always accompanied by pain. In the early stages, cancers are rarely painful. If pain does occur, it may be for a variety of reasons:

• The tumor presses on a nerve
• The tumor has invaded a bone and caused a weakening and fracture of the bone
• Infection results from treatments such as surgery, radiation or medications
• Depression, anxiety or tension occur

Many treatments and medications control or eliminate pain. In dealing with pain, the health care team first tries to find the cause of the pain. This guides the team in pain treatment. The goals of treatment are maximum comfort, alertness, and independence.

Myth No. 3: The treatment is worse than the disease

Many people fear cancer treatments more than the disease itself, but every year new techniques or devices improve procedures and make treatments easier. New medications also do a better job of controlling side effects, and reconstructive surgery can sometimes minimize physical changes caused by surgery.