Young Cancer Patient Resources
Cancer is different when you're younger
At Novant Health, we understand how a cancer diagnosis in your 20s, 30s, or early 40s can interrupt school, career, family plans or caregiving. That’s why we have created a program specifically for younger cancer patients, offering expert care, personal support, education and access to leading research and clinical trials. We focus on the unique challenges young people face, such as fertility, sexual health, body image and long-term wellness. Our goal is to ensure you have the resources you need and guidance that is tailored to your life, so you can move from diagnosis to survivorship with strength and confidence.
Support and care for growing families
A cancer diagnosis can raise questions about fertility, parenting, and your plans for the future. Our expert team is here to help you make informed decisions that honor your goals, today and in the years to come.
- Fertility Preservation Counseling: Oncofertility specialists coordinate with your oncology care team and help you explore options before treatment begins.
- Emotional Support Resources: for navigating decisions about parenthood, now or later. Whether you’re considering children or want to preserve the option, we’ll walk with you every step of the way.
Support for working professionals
Whether you're in the office, working remotely or self-employed, we help you make informed decisions that preserve your career while prioritizing your health.
- Flexible appointment scheduling: Early morning, and late afternoon appointments, when possible, will help you accommodate work commitments without compromising care.
- Virtual care appointments: Designed for those with full schedules, virtual care options provide access to participating care team members and support services where available.
- Personalized treatment planning: We collaborate with you, working together to align your treatment schedule with your professional and family obligations.
- Virtual programing options: From our 12-week virtual Cancer Wellness classes, designed to help you manage treatment side effects and lower the risk of recurrence, to the flexibility of joining a support group online, we offer options that fit your schedule and meet you where you are.
Services to help you heal, relax and restore
- Consultation with a conventional medical professional who has completed additional training in integrative medicine.
- Personal visits with certified pharmacists to build customized plans for vitamins, supplements and herbs to support your wellbeing throughout treatment and beyond.
- Oncology massage to help in reducing nausea, relieve pain and tension, ease fatigue, alleviate lymphedema, help to prevent neuropathy, improve sleep and reduce anxiety.
- Acupuncture in group or individual settings as part of traditional Chinese medicine.
Kemp Bessant Cancer Support Center
For patients in the Charlotte area, The Novant Health Kemp Bessant Cancer Support Center is a space designed to help you and your family. The center is in a comfortable, home-like setting close to the Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center campus in Charlotte.
Services are provided by a team of counselors and case managers who are specially trained to treat cancer including:
- Case management support: A master’s-level social worker helps patients develop plans to handle the practical stressors of treatment and recovery. Resources are strategically accessed and appropriately matched with patients to help them complete treatment. These services are free of charge to Novant Health cancer patients.
- Counseling support: Licensed clinical social workers respond to an individual’s emotional needs with proven therapeutic techniques. Confidential therapy sessions allow individuals affected by cancer to process their feelings and improve their ability to cope with the emotions related to the diagnosis. These services are free of charge to Novant Health cancer patients.
- Support groups: We are here to build connections among survivors, with groups open to any community members at no cost. Meetings reduce isolation, provide validation, and offer opportunities to learn from and be inspired by patients and survivors. Kemp Bessant offers professionally facilitated and peer-led groups, on-site or hybrid, daytime or evening.
- Arts in health services: Art is a useful tool to express complex emotions and release stress brought on by cancer. The Arts in Health facilitator guides individuals in a creative process to improve mood and promote coping through individual weekly sessions and monthly open studio groups. Arts in Health Services are offered at no-cost and open to anyone in the community at the Kemp Bessant art studio.
- Lending boutique: Offers wigs, turbans, scarves, and mastectomy bras to help manage appearance-related changes that result from treatment. Services are available to anyone in the community at no cost. Individual appointments are scheduled to allow privacy and time to make the selection process more comfortable.
For more information, please contact the Kemp Bessant Center at 704-384-5223.
Genetic testing & counseling
Understanding your genetic cancer risk can help you take control of your health and plan for the future with confidence.
- Personalized insight: Learn how inherited genetic factors may affect your cancer risk
- Expert guidance: Work one-on-one with certified genetic counselors
- Proactive care: Create a plan for prevention, screening and early detection