“Physically, cancer and cancer treatments are tremendously challenging, often requiring a combination of debilitating treatments that can continue for months or years. But effects on mental health are also common, with depression and anxiety disorders frequently reported. In fact, recent studies have shown that cancer patients and the parents of young children with cancer sometimes meet the textbook criteria for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These mental states can cause harmful health effects of their own, compounding the challenges of treatment and disease in a damaging, downward spiral. Patients suffering from depression, anxiety, or excessive stress can have difficulty remembering things, concentrating, and making decisions. These mental health problems can also decrease patients’ motivation to complete treatment, change unhealthy practices such as smoking, and decrease their ability to cope with the demands of a rigorous treatment process. There is growing evidence that stress can directly interfere with the working of the body’s immune system and other functions.”