Wilms Tumor Patient & Family Handbook

Multivitamins, herbs, and other diet supplements should be avoided unless approved by your child’s healthcare team. There can be interactions between them and your child’s chemotherapy. Please ask your healthcare team if you are considering any of these types of therapy. A dietitian may be part of your child’s healthcare team. They are trained in the calorie and nutritional needs of children. The dietician can provide you with education regarding your child’s dietary needs and ideas about how you can meet these needs during treatment. Your child’s healthcare team will monitor your child’s nutritional status, height, and weight during and after treatment to try to prevent problems. If there is a concern about nutritional problems, your child’s healthcare team will discuss with you ways to manage and improve your child’s nutrition. n CAN MY CHILD ATTEND SCHOOL DURING THERAPY? Your child’s ability to go to school during therapy will depend on the intensity of the treatment and your child’s response to treatment. There may be extended periods when your child is unable to go to school because of hospitalizations or treatments. However, it is important that your child keep up with their schoolwork, even during these times. Federal laws ensure that your child can receive the same education as their peers. Talk with your child’s healthcare team and school about these laws. Then work with them to arrange for a tutor or another way to help your child stay on track with schoolwork. Discuss your child’s ability to attend school with the healthcare team. Some children are able to attend school between hospitalizations or treatments. Many hospitals and clinics have resources such as educational liaisons to assist in coordinating school services and educating teachers and classmates to prepare them for your child’s return to school. SUGGESTED READING CureSearch for Children’s Cancer. (2011). Kidney cancer in children (Wilms tumor): Just diagnosed information. Retrieved from http://www.curesearch.org/Wilms-Tumor-in-Children-Just-Diagnosed-Information. National Cancer Institute. (2018). Wilms tumor and other childhood kidney tumors. Retrieved from http://www. cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/wilms/Patient. REFERENCES Baggot, C., Fochtman, D., Foley, G., & Kelly, K. (2011). Nursing Care of Children and Adolescents with Cancer and Blood Disorders . Glenview, IL: APHON. American Cancer Society. (n.d.). Wilms Tumor. Retrieved December 16, 2020, from http://www.cancer.org/ cancer/wilms-tumor/about.html

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