Get Organized

You are going to be taking in a ton of new information, from meeting new doctors and asking lots of questions to trying to keep your appointments, prescriptions and breast cancer terms straight. One way to prevent yourself from feeling overwhelmed is getting organized.

Cancer101 provides a free planner to the newly diagnosed, put together by breast cancer survivors like Cancer101 founder Monica Knoll and patient advocates. It has folders for holding all of your medical reports and insurance paperwork, a business card holder for quick reference, suggested questions to ask your doctors and even a dictionary of medical terms from the American Cancer Society.

One of the first steps you can take in getting organized is to call your insurance company and inform them of your condition. Ask to be assigned a case manager so you will only have to deal with one person who is familiar with your situation whenever you have questions about bills, reimbursements and referrals. Find out everything you can about what will and won't be covered.

If you don't have insurance, the hospital where you will receive your treatment can assign you a social worker who will make sure your medical needs are met. They can show you what services and programs are available in your community, and also provide family and patient counseling.