Talking with your child or teen about having leukemia
Helping your child or teen understand leukemia can help him or her cope better with treatment. It is
important to tell your child about leukemia and answer questions in honest, simple terms. If you do not
give your child the facts in words he or she can understand, the child’s own thoughts can often be scarier
than the truth.
Many different staff members will be involved in helping your child understand his or her disease and
treatments. A certified child life specialist is one of the team members who will work closely with your
family. This staff member can help the patient and siblings understand treatment and adjust to being in
the hospital. Child life specialists are here to work with your child and his or her brothers and sisters at
any time during your stay.
The following ideas may help you talk with your child about leukemia. We suggest that you use the
words “leukemia” and “cancer” openly. That way your child will be more familiar with the words and
feel more at ease when asking questions.
Use words that fit your child’s age
Verbal Toddler: Since toddlers are just learning their body parts, they may not know the term blood. It
is OK to tell your child that he or she is sick or that his or her body is sick, and that he or she will need
medicines in the hospital or clinic to get well.
Preschooler and Early School-Age: You can tell a child in this age group that he or she is in the
hospital because his or her blood is sick. It is OK to start using the words leukemia and cancer.
School-Age: Many children at this age are learning about cells and know that all parts of their bodies
are made up of cells. This is one way to help your child understand leukemia:
Your body is made up of three main types of blood cells and each one has a different job to help your
body. White blood cells fight infections, like colds and the flu. Red blood cells carry the air (oxygen)
throughout your body and give you energy. Platelets are the cells that help bleeding to stop by giving
you scabs. When your blood is sick with leukemia, it makes sick cells that get in the way of all the
healthy cells. Leukemia makes it hard for the healthy blood cells to do their jobs.
Teens: These patients are older and can often understand what the doctor is saying. But, it is still
important to talk about the things that are said during these discussions. As with all ages, use the correct
terms for the illness and treatments.
Keep in mind
Talking about your child’s illness can bring up many questions. Talking freely with him or her about
coming to the hospital and about treatment can help him or her to cope.
Page 1 of 2
w w w. u c d m c . u c d a v i s . e d u / c a n c e r
Continued
At all age levels, it is important to assure your child that leukemia is not contagious; he or she cannot
give it to anyone or get it from anyone else. Also, this illness is not a punishment; nothing your child did
or did not do could have made this illness happen.
Your child or teen may have a family member or friend who has had cancer or may have heard stories
about cancer. For this reason, it would be good to tell him of her that there are many types of cancer.
Cancer can be in different parts of the body, and each person’s cancer is different. Each cancer patient
takes different kinds of medicines that work best for that person’s cancer and body type.
Questions?
The Child Life Program staff can work closely with your family to help your child understand leukemia
and adjust to being in the hospital. At the same time, they help promote normal development. Your
child’s doctor and nurses are also available to answer questions.
Adapted with permission from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Revised 3/05
UC Davis Cancer Center 12/06
w w w. u c d m c . u c d a v i s . e d u / c a n c e r
Page 2 of 2