NIMH » Twitter Chat on Cancer and Psycho-Oncology

NIMH » Twitter Chat on Cancer and Psycho-Oncology

Twitter Chat on Cancer and Psycho-Oncology

Are you coping with cancer? NIMH and NCI are hosting a Twitter chat on how patients and caregivers, across all ages, can deal with the psychological impact of cancer. Experts from NIMH, NCI, and others will be on hand to answer your related questions.

Please use the hashtag #CopingCancer to follow and participate in the Twitter chat. To ask questions, you must have a Twitter account. If you prefer to simply observe the chat taking place, you may do so at twubs.com  and view the conversation in real-time. An archive of the chat will be posted on NIMH’s website following the event.

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July 14, 2015 • Twitter Chat

Date: July 22, 2015, 1:00 - 2:00 ET
Hashtag: #CopingCancer 

When faced with a diagnosis of cancer, you may feel extreme stress, anger, sadness, or a number of other strong emotions.  These temporary feelings are expected, but if these and other symptoms last longer than a couple of weeks, it could be the sign of a mental disorder. However, even cancer patients who do not meet the diagnostic criteria for any specific mental disorder may be experiencingpsychosocial distress .

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network  defines distress as “an unpleasant experience of an emotional, psychological, social, or spiritual nature that interferes with the ability to cope with cancer treatment. It extends along a continuum, from common normal feelings of vulnerability, sadness, and fears, to problems that are disabling, such as true depression, anxiety, panic, and feeling isolated or in a spiritual crisis.”

Cancer not only affects the patient, but also caregivers. Taking care of a chronically ill patient is not an easy. Caregivers often ignore or fail to recognize when stress leads to their own physical illness and mental illness.

Standards of care have been developed for the management of psychosocial distress for patients and caregivers. Please join the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and the National Cancer Institute  (NCI) for a Twitter chat to learn more about coping with cancer. Maryland Pao, M.D., Clinical Director and Deputy Scientific Director at NIMH, will be on hand to discuss cancer and psycho-oncology, as well as, Julia Rowland , Ph.D., Director of NCI’s Office of Cancer Survivorship  and others.

Please use the hashtag #CopingCancer to follow and participate in the Twitter chat. To ask questions, you must have a Twitter account. If you prefer to simply observe the chat taking place, you may do so at twubs.com  and view the conversation in real-time. An archive of the chat will be posted on NIMH’s website following the event.

If you have any questions, please email NIMHpress@nih.gov. See you on Twitter!