What to Write on a Card to Someone With Cancer

When someone is ill, sending a card can be a great way to show you're thinking of them, but sometimes it can be hard to know what to write on a card to someone who has cancer. Read on for some tips and suggestions.

Choosing a card for someone who has cancer can be a difficult thing to do. Sympathy cards may be appropriate, but you want to make sure they don't have too negative of a message. After all, the purpose of sending the card is to lift the person's spirits, not to make them feel sad about their situation.

Get Well Soon cards may also be appropriate, but you want to take the seriousness of the situation into account when choosing a card. A Get Well Soon card geared towards a more minor illness may not be appropriate if a person has just received a cancer diagnosis. A card that has a cheerful message about feeling better and persevering through an illness, on the other hand, may be just the right thing to send.

If you can't find an appropriate pre-printed greeting card for a cancer patient, then you can choose a simple card with a nice picture on the front, flowers or a pretty sunset for example, and a blank inside. You can then use the inside to write a personal message to the person you are sending the card to. Of course, to come up with the personal message for the inside of the card, you will have to think carefully about what to write on a card to someone who has cancer.

Writing the Card

The closeness of your relationship with the person, the attitude of the person to whom you are sending the card, and the seriousness of the diagnosis all play a role in what you write in their card.

When you first sit down to write the card, think about how the person is likely going to be taking the cancer diagnosis and treatment. Some people are fighters who won't let anything get them down. They may view the cancer as a minor blip in their radar and as something they can get through quickly and easily.

If so, you want to make sure you help to bolster their confidence with your words in the card. A simple message signifying something like "We know cancer is no match for you!" could give them a positive boost in their spirits; be careful, though if the cancer diagnosis is very serious or terminal, then you may not want to take this attitude or tone.

Offers of Help

Sometimes, the most meaningful things you can write are offers of concrete help. Words such as "let me know if there is anything I can do," or "I'm here if you need anything" or "I'm around if you want to talk," can open the door for the cancer patient to feel like she can contact you to discuss what she is going through.

Make sure if you do write words in the card that are an offer of help that you will be able and willing to follow through. Better yet, if you can, hand deliver the card yourself with a home cooked meal or some of the person's favorite videos or magazines that they can read when they are feeling too sick to venture out of the house. The card, and your concrete actions showing your love, can go a long way towards making the person feel better.

Keep it Simple

Often, it isn't what you write, but the fact that you thought about the person and took the time to send the card, that will really brighten their day. As such, don't worry about writing long messages or meaningful words.

Instead, just include a simple note such as "I was thinking of you and I hope you are feeling alright," or "I'm praying for you as you go through this process and I am here for you."