Cancer, you and your partner: Overview

Many cancers can now be cured, and some treatments have become easier to cope with. However, finding out that you have cancer is almost always a time of deep emotional| crisis and distress.

Being diagnosed with a serious illness can put a strain on your relationships. The effect cancer might have on your life will depend on many things, including the type of cancer, the treatment and its side effects, and your lifestyle. The effect on your relationship with your partner may depend on the level of commitment in your relationship, how long you’ve been together, how long you have been living with the diagnosis and how it affects your day-to-day life.

When someone has an illness that affects their relationship, it can help to think about what things were like before. If the relationship was difficult before the cancer was diagnosed, it probably won’t be any better after the diagnosis. However, some couples come to a new understanding and love for one another as a result of overcoming a shared challenge like cancer.