# Understanding the cancer match you're in Not to be overly dramatic, but we've been thrown into a life or death match with this cancer thing. Cancer already has its game plan laid out — which is to eventually overwhelm the body it's in. That's just the truth of it. The first step is to properly *understand the match you’re in*. You want to understand the rules and where you stand, so you can develop your own solid plan to win. Two questions to begin: - What kind of cancer do you have? - What stage is it in? Once you understand these two things well enough, some of the established options, resources, and strategies already available will be easier to find. There is a ton of critical information in the hands of your standard care doctors that you *must* get access to. But you won’t get it if you don't ask. Here is a list of basic questions to ask your doctor to get you going. Don't forget to have your pen and notepad handy when you ask them; you'll want to get this stuff down somewhere you can easily reference later. > [!info] Resource: > [List: Questions to ask your doctor after a cancer diagnoses](../5.%20Resources/Questions%20for%20your%20doctor%20after%20a%20cancer%20diagnoses.md) \ # Get some basics down Along with understanding your specific cancer type, there are many common characteristics of cancer which everyone should understand before going too far. Here are a few starting resources to help with that: [The Cancer Life Cycle](../4.%20Lions%20&%20Tigers%20&%20Bears%20(Pathways%20&%20Drivers)/The%20Cancer%20Life%20Cycle.md) [Lions & Tigers & Bears along the path](../4.%20Lions%20&%20Tigers%20&%20Bears%20(Pathways%20&%20Drivers)/4.1.%20Lions%20&%20Tigers%20&%20Bears%20along%20the%20path.md)