For adolescents and young adults, going through cancer treatment can be really tough. Sometimes it’s unclear how things are going to turn out. There may be difficult conversations that young people want to have with family, friends and their healthcare team that they might not have the words for.

​When there is so much uncertainty related to the future, being able to put words to their concerns can help young people feel more in control and have more of a say in their care and treatment.
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Voicing my CHOiCESTM

Voicing my CHOiCES™ is an advance care planning tool for young people, developed by a team in the United States to give young people a way to express the things that are important to them - their thoughts about how you want to be comforted, supported, treated, and remembered.

Advance care planning is a series of steps that a patient, their family and healthcare professionals can take to make sure that the patient’s values, choices and decisions can be communicated in the future, if they were no longer able to do so themselves. For adolescents and young adults these steps are often recorded in a booklet, such as Voicing my CHOiCES™
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What this study aims to achieve

Currently, there is no advance care planning tool specifically for Australian young people. Our team needs assistance evaluating the American Voicing my CHOiCES™ tool and adapting it for Australian young people with cancer. Creating an Australian advanced care planning tool will ensure young people’s voices are heard if their treatment does not go to plan, or takes an unexpected turn.

Would you like to be involved?

You are eligible, if you are:

• A young person aged 15-25 who currently has cancer, or a cancer survivor who was treated between the ages of 15-25 years;

OR

• A parent or sibling of a cancer survivor aged 15-25 years during treatment;

OR

• A bereaved parent or sibling of someone aged 15-25 years old, who did not survive their cancer

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What does study participation involve?

• Read the information sheet
• A face-to-face chat at Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick*
• Complete a brief questionnaire

​Study participants will receive a $30 voucher to thank them for their time.
​(Gift voucher choice includes: iTunes, Westfield shopping, JB Hi-Fi, and EB Games)
 
*WHAT IF I DON’T LIVE IN SYDNEY?
If you are interested, but don’t live in Sydney or aren’t able to travel to Sydney Children’s Hospital, you can still participate via telephone or online videoconference (like Skype) interview!

Contact details

Stephanie Arteaga
Research Assistant
Email: s.arteaga@unsw.edu.au
Phone: (+612) 9382 3118
 
Ursula Sansom-Daly
Chief Investigator
Email: ursula@unsw.edu.au
Phone: (+612) 9382 3114 
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