Should you return to work while undergoing cancer treatment? Will you be able to sustain a full day or will you be too tired to work well? Will you be able to concentrate fully or will you be too preoccupied? How much do you tell colleagues about your condition?

These are just some of the important questions considered in 44 1/2 Choices You Can Make If You Have Cancer, a book to be published in Ireland next month.

One of the most potentially damaging things about cancer is that sense of things being taken out of your control. This book shows the extent of the control that people living with cancer can continue to enjoy.

Written by Sheila Dainow, Jo Wright and Vicki Golding, all of whose lives have been affected by cancer, the book is divided into four sections: prediagnosis, diagnosis, treatment and post-treatment.

Each step is presented as a choice, right from the initial detection of a suspect lump or bleeding. "One choice you have is, of course, to ignore your symptoms. At first it can seem more comfortable to stay in limbo; not knowing means you can pretend all is well."

The pros and cons of ignoring a suspect symptom are explored in bullet points:

As long as you stay in limbo your imagination is free to run riot and your fears increase.

If you do have cancer, it might be harder to cure if it is treated later rather than earlier.

Ignoring something does not make it go away.

This leads to practical suggestions on what to do. The person with the suspect symptom is advised to visit their GP. "This may seem like a risky thing to do because you are facing up to the fact that you might have cancer. On the other hand there might be another explanation for your symptoms and you may be worrying unnecessarily."

For each choice, a panel presents a short glimpse of one person's experience of dealing with the choice in question. For instance, in the choice on work, Vicki says: "Some colleagues just listened and quietly gave support. Others felt unable to face me although they worked in the caring environment of social services. They pretended that nothing had happened, that life was unchanged and I found myself colluding in that process."

The authors advise that if you decide to return to work while undergoing treatment, it is important to discuss the implications with appropriate people in the workplace.

And they say that not all workplaces are as accommodating as they might be. For instance, the husband of a person living with cancer says how he took it for granted that he would get as much time and help as he needed. "In fact, what happened was that every obstacle was put in my way. When I applied for special leave I was told I probably wouldn't get it." Even when his wife was in hospital he was never allowed to leave early, he says.

44 1/2 Choices You Can Make If You Have Cancer will be published by Newleaf.jmarms@irish-times.ie