John,

The best thing that you can do for yourself is to make sure someone like your wife, or other friend, is on hand to check to make sure the doctors and nurses are not making mistakes in reading your chart, giving you the wrong medication, not washing their hands -in your presence.

Ideally you would have someone on hand who is an expert on your type of cancer, but is an outsider and very sharp.

You also have to be aggressively questioning the, tests, the recommendations, best done by someone in the field, otherwise it is difficult or impossible.

If you know someone who knows the field, but cannot be present, look up the latest research findings to make sure you are getting the most "reasonable" treatments, not stuff that was considered good, but which the latest research has serious doubts about.

I'm sorry if this is not very positive sounding but it's the advice from a lot of research done from the patients point of view.

Being afraid is reasonable, but trying to keep a positive outlook has been found to be of some help too, so it is worth the effort.

Best of Luck and good wishes,

Dan

https://soundcloud.com/dstong