It's a scary and nasty word to even come from my mouth...the 'c' word; and I mean cancer. I have been dealing with problems for the past nearly 2-1/2 years and every corner I would turn I would get a wrong diagnosis. From being told I have functional dyspepsia, to a slow emptying stomach, to basically without the words...told it was 'all in my head'. I have been through too many doctors and specialists that I ever imagined. The cancer I have just been diagnosed with is called Carcinoid. It's a slowing growing stomach cancer. After more tests that one should even be put through, the results clearly showed the carcinoid. The only problem with it is the fact that it's so slow growing that they are not yet able to find the tumor(s). They would like to not do any treatment at this time because they want it to grow. Scary, I know. Even scarrier knowing that I have 3 boys and a husband to tend to every day. Being a wife and mother are important to me and my family means the world to me. My husband and I are not at this time saying anything to our children (ages 13, 10 & 8-1/2) simply because we don't want them to worry and because we are not real sure what they are doing in terms of treatment. They know that their mom is sick and there are days that the pain is debilitating, but they are strong and help me get through the pain.

So how does a mother break the silence to her children that she is living with cancer? The treatment that they would like to start is a medication that I would self-inject on a daily basis. They say that this would help the pain and hopefully slow the growth process even more.

Please give me some advise on how and when to tell my children.