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Finding out that your friend has cancer is not an easy thing to hear. You may feel sad, scared, confused, mad, uncomfortable, worried, unbelieving, guilty, and so many more emotions all at the same time. In fact, just the sound of the word, osteosarcoma, is really scary. Osteosarcoma is such a huge, confusing word. So, if you're a friend of a teen who has osteosarcoma, you may be asking yourself:

• How can it be?
• What am I supposed to do?
• What am I supposed to say?

All of the above are valid questions whose answers can be really hard to find. However, one of the most helpful things you can do is to learn about the disease and let your friend know that you are there for them and willing to give any support he or she needs. Put aside your fears about the situation and be a good friend by honestly talking about how you feel. You don't have to hide your feelings. Let your friend know that you are scared, sad, etc. They will understand as long as you are honest and sincere. Overall, your friend just wants to be treated normally, like someone without cancer, but also needs the opportunity to share their experiences with someone.

Preparation is more important than how or what you say to your friend. So here are some tips on how to prepare yourself to be a good friend during treatment:

• Listen. Your friend needs to feel as though there is someone there for him or her and needs to talk about feelings just like you do.
• Get involved in your friend's treatment. Going to appointments with a friend can be fun for both of you. You can help your friend get through treatments while learning about what exactly he or she is experiencing.
• Stick by your friend when people may tease them. Some people just won't understand what is happening to your friend. Since others can be scared and don't know how to handle the situation, they tend to react by teasing. Sticking close to your friend will help give him or her comfort when people say hurtful things.
• Keep your friend involved in activities and come up with new hobbies that may be more suitable for their new physical challenges. Don't assume that your friend doesn't want to be invited to social events now that they have osteosarcoma. Your friend can still do many things with you and they still want to do things just like you do. However, you may want to find some new activities and hobbies that won't be so physically demanding. One suggestion is to have a movie night.
• Treat your friend like you did before. Your friend is the same person as they have always been. There's no reason to treat them any differently. Although they may look differently on the outside, they are the same person on the inside.