Abstract
Kids Can Cope is a group intervention designed to help children and teenagers aged 5-18 years who currently have a parent diagnosed with cancer. The program is intended to (1) help these young people learn about cancer and its treatment, (2) provide them with opportunities to share their feelings and concerns in a safe environment with others who are in similar situations, and (3) increase their repertoire of coping strategies. Three themes that emerge consistently during the sessions are (1) the universality of the group members' experiences, (2) misconccptions about cancer, and (3) themes specific to developmental age. The authors also describe a number of specific situations and dilemmas they have encountered in running the group and how those situations and dilemmas have been resolved.