Cancer Support & Survivorship

If you have terminal cancer, the Advanced Illness Support Clinic will provide compassionate care that helps you and your family cope with your diagnosis and improve your quality of life. You gain access to:

• Community services
• Pain management techniques
• Social and spiritual support
• Resources that help you create advance directives, which detail your decisions about end-of-life care

You benefit from Seasons Medical Group practitioners who are experts in hospice care and work with your doctors to ensure you receive comprehensive services tailored to you.

For guidance on your journey through breast cancer diagnosis and treatment, rely on our breast health navigator. This specially trained nurse will:

• Coordinate testing and medical appointments
• Educate you about your condition and treatment options
• Help you communicate with your doctors
• Connect you with resources at Rush Copley and in the local community

After completing cancer treatment, learn how to take care of your physical, emotional and social health. Join fellow survivors in Caring Forward, our cancer survivorship program, where you’ll get advice from medical experts and build friendships.

You and your family can find help coping with your condition by meeting with our clinical social worker for professional counseling. The social worker also can assist you in finding ways to meet your practical needs, such as financial aid and transportation to medical appointments.

To learn about your options for financial assistance, call our Cancer Care Center at 630-978-6252 and request an appointment with a financial counselor.

Oncology massage is an approach to massage therapy based in both compassion and specialized massage treatments to help people manage their experience with cancer.

If you rely on sign language or primarily speak a language other than English, call our Cancer Care Center to arrange free interpreter services for your medical appointments.

Relax and improve your mood with weekly sessions of music therapy as long as you’re in treatment. You’ll meet with a professional music therapist who plays songs geared to your taste.

Get the nutrients your body needs during chemotherapy or radiation therapy by taking advantage of NutriTherapy, our nutrition support program. When you begin cancer treatment, you’ll be offered a consultation with a registered dietitian who will:

• Teach you how to choose and prepare healthy foods you can eat even if you experience nausea, mouth sores, taste changes or other treatment side effects
• Explain how nutrition can help your body respond better to treatment

As long as you’re in treatment, continue to ask your dietitian questions to make sure you know how to get the nutrition you need as easily as possible.

To request an appointment with a registered dietitian, call 630-375-2859 or email NutriTherapy@rushcopley.com. You’re welcome to invite a family member to your consultation for support.

Our Oncology and Survivorship Navigator will help guide you through the process from the point of diagnosis. The nurse coordinates care from diagnosis, treatment (surgery, chemotherapy and radiation therapy) through survivorship. This person is dedicated to helping patients and families overcome common healthcare barriers.

Get access to computers, books and brochures that offer information about cancer in our comfortable patient library, open to all patients and families. Located at the Rush Copley Cancer Care Center, the library is open 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Ask a nurse for help contacting a clinically trained chaplain who can provide encouragement and comfort. You can also pray or meditate in our interfaith chapel, open 24/7 on the second floor of Rush Copley Medical Center.

Build friendships, learn problem-solving skills and discover coping methods by joining one or more support groups.

To reduce stress and fatigue and sleep better, take part in free, weekly Cancer Care Yoga sessions at Waterford Place. For more information, call Waterford Place at 331-301-5280.