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Parenting
- Medical Review: Gregory D. Garber, MSW, LCSW
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If you’re a parent or guardian and you’ve just been diagnosed with breast cancer, one of your biggest concerns may be how to tell your kids. You are not alone.
There are many ways to make the conversation easier. On the Telling children about a breast cancer diagnosis page, you can read tips on how to prepare and what to say.
You may also have questions about how to talk with children and teens as you go through surgery and other treatments. Visit Talking with children through treatment to find practical tips about communicating effectively with kids of all ages — from preschoolers to teenagers.
You can also learn about the LBBC Reading for Reassurance program: free books that can help guide conversations about cancer with kids.
This section also offers advice about how to care for yourself as a parent with breast cancer, as well as how to support children’s mental and emotional health.
Whether you’re a parent or guardian, or you’re a grandparent or other relative who regularly cares for children and teens, this information is for you.
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Parenting with early-stage breast cancer
When Emily was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer at age 35, she had to make decisions about when and how to tell her kids. She shares some of the ways she has approached communication, including how she responded to her daughter’s concerns about her own health.
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About this page
About LBBC
Reviewed and updated: March 14, 2026
Reviewed by: Gregory D. Garber, MSW, LCSW
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Living Beyond Breast Cancer is a national nonprofit organization that seeks to create a world that understands there is more than one way to have breast cancer. To fulfill its mission of providing trusted information and a community of support to those impacted by the disease, Living Beyond Breast Cancer offers on-demand emotional, practical, and evidence-based content. For over 30 years, the organization has remained committed to creating a culture of acceptance — where sharing the diversity of the lived experience of breast cancer fosters self-advocacy and hope. For more information, learn more about our programs and services.