Hi Rosa,

Thanks for reaching out, I'm sorry to hear about your diagnosis but congratulations on the job offer! You are generally not required to disclose your diagnosis to your potential employer (either before or after you are hired). You can proceed with the hiring process as you normally would, but you definitely want to let your doctor know that you are starting a new job so that when determining your treatment plan you can take this into consideration. Depending on your treatment and your job, you may need to consider whether some modifications to your work space or schedule are necessary. For many people these modifications can be considered a reasonable accommodation under a federal law called the Americans with Disabilities Act, not every employer is bound by the law so to learn more click here: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/at-work/Legal-and-Financial/Cancer-and-the-ADA-FMLA. If you do need access to a reasonable accommodation you may have disclose some information about your health to explain being eligible for one.

If you can't imagine not disclosing at this point then you want to think carefully about how you do it. Do you have your job offer in writing? Can you set up a meeting with your new supervisor to discuss in person? Most importantly before you share any news at work you want to know what the treatment plan is so that you can be strategic in what you tell and how.

I don't know enough about your work or diagnosis to give you more specific recommendations, but I would recommend that you check out our section on creating an action plan: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/en/at-work/creating-an-action-plan. I would also suggest that you download our free Living and Working with Cancer Workbook, which will help guide you through balancing work and cancer: http://www.cancerandcareers.org/publication_orders/new

Please let us know if you have any other questions.

Best,

Sarah, Manager of Programs, Cancer and Careers