Skip to navigation
PERSONAL ATTENTION & PASSIONATE ADVOCACY PLAN FOR YOUR FUTURE TODAY
laptop with pen.

FACING A CANCER DIAGNOSIS? IT MAY BE TIME FOR ESTATE PLANNING

Law Office of Mary Alice Gwynn, PA July 15, 2019

No one wants to go to the doctor for a checkup or due to feeling ill and receive a diagnosis of cancer. Unfortunately, numerous people in Florida and across the country receive such devastating news often. This type of information could cause many people to put their life affairs into perspective and may even have them considering estate planning.

Estate planning is essential for getting one's end-of-life affairs in order, and even if a person's prognosis seems relatively positive, it can still be important to have documents in place just in case. In particular, individuals may want to create health care-related documents as part of their plans. These documents can include a living will, power of attorney documents, health care proxy and HIPAA release forms.

The exact nature of the diagnosis could play a part in the urgency of planning. If the individual has a significantly shortened life expectancy, completing plans as soon as possible may be wise. If it is expected that years of life are still ahead, the urgency may be lessened, but the need for planning still exists.

Certainly, receiving a difficult diagnosis can have Florida residents considering many parts of their lives. Though they may want to focus more on living their lives to the fullest rather then dwelling on an end of life, estate planning is still a useful step to take. Individuals may feel more at ease knowing that they have put important affairs in order and that vital decisions regarding their health care and estates have been made.