Medical Oncologist
Before you start
A printable pre-chemotherapy checklist
Five blocks: the tests, the two referrals that cannot wait, the paperwork, the house, and the people. Written on one sheet and ticked off as each is done, so nothing is discovered missing on the morning of cycle one. Two items are genuinely time-critical: the dental check and the fertility referral.
NG
Medically reviewed by Dr. Naresh GunduConsultant Medical Oncologist · MBBS, DNB (Internal Medicine), DM (Medical Oncology, AIIMS) · last reviewed September 2026, next review due September 2027
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The short answer
What goes on a pre-chemotherapy checklist?
Five blocks: the tests, the two referrals that cannot wait, the paperwork, the house, and the people. Written on one sheet, ticked off as each is done, so that nothing is discovered missing on the morning of cycle one.
It exists because the fortnight before treatment is busier than anyone expects and nobody is thinking clearly. A list survives that state; a family's memory, spread across four people and three phones, does not.
Two items are genuinely time-critical
The dental check and the fertility referral. Everything else on this sheet can be caught up if it slips. Those two cannot, so put them at the top and do them first.
Write it out rather than printing a generic one
Your sheet carries your appointment dates, your hospital's numbers, your scheme's requirements and your own household's arrangements. That is what makes it useful rather than decorative.
Give the sheet one owner, usually the attendant rather than the patient. A list belonging to everybody gets kept by nobody.Blocks one and two
The tests, and the two that cannot wait
- Full blood count taken, and the report collected
- Kidney and liver function done
- Heart test booked, if your plan needs one
- Hepatitis B and C, HIV screen sent
- Height, weight and pregnancy test recorded
- Dental check booked — do this first, not last
- Fertility referral raised, if children could ever apply
- Vaccinations discussed, for you and for the household
- Port or line decision made, if your plan runs many cycles
- All reports collected into one file, in date order
Not sure whether this applies to you?
Ask an oncologistBlocks three, four and five
The paperwork, the house and the people
- Paperwork: the plan in writing
- The drugs, the number of cycles, how often, and the date of cycle one. Plus a one-page treatment summary to carry with you. Ask for both at the planning appointment.
- Paperwork: insurance started
- Pre-authorisation begun before cycle one, not after. The hospital's estimate obtained, and a clear answer on what falls outside the approval. Every original bill kept from day one.
- Medicines: the whole list handed over
- Every strip, box, inhaler, drop, powder and herbal preparation shown to the oncologist. The supportive medicines prescription collected before treatment day rather than on it.
- House: water, food and the bathroom
- Safe drinking water sorted, plain food cooked and frozen in small portions, soap at every basin, the floor cleared, a night light on the way to the toilet.
- House: the fridge door
- Emergency list, both hospital numbers, the medicine chart and the cycle dates, all photographed onto more than one phone. A thermometer bought, tested and with a spare.
- People: who does what
- One person for appointments and the file, one for medicines, one for money and paperwork. Leave arranged at work. Children and family told. Transport for a night-time emergency decided in advance.
!
Copy this block onto the fridge before cycle one
Go to the nearest emergency department the same day, saying clearly that the person is on chemotherapy, for: a fever or shivering uncontrollably · breathlessness or chest pain · nothing staying down · no urine since the morning · bleeding that will not stop · severe stomach pain or a hard swollen stomach · confusion or being very hard to rouse · redness, pain or discharge around a port or line. Do not give paracetamol to bring a temperature down before being seen, and do not wait for morning.
Leave a number, we will call you
One field. No form to fill in, and no charge for the call.
Making it work
How to actually use the sheet
The order matters more than the completeness. Do the two time-critical referrals in the first days, start the insurance in the first week, and leave the shopping and the house until last. Families routinely reverse this and stock the kitchen before booking the dentist.
Tick it, do not read it
Physically mark each line as it is genuinely done, not as it is planned. The whole purpose is catching the item everybody assumed someone else had handled, and a sheet you scan and feel reassured by does not do that job.
Put the dates on it
Beside each booked appointment, write the date, the time and where it is. Half the trips wasted in this fortnight are wasted on turning up at the wrong building or on the wrong day.
Add your own lines
The ward's actual phone number, the pharmacy that is cheaper, the parking that is easier, the name of the coordinator who answers. By cycle two your sheet should look nothing like a generic one.
Book the appointments together, not one at a time
The fortnight is mostly spent waiting rather than doing. Ask on the first day for the complete list of what has to be arranged, then book every slot in one sitting. Families who discover each requirement separately make the same journey to the same hospital three times, and lose a week to it that they did not need to lose.
Keep it after cycle one
Most of the paperwork and household blocks stay relevant for the whole course, and the emergency block stays relevant until treatment ends. Do not throw the sheet away once treatment starts.
Photograph the finished sheet on two phones. The person who needs it at midnight may not be the one who wrote it.Commonly believed
Four things families get wrong in this fortnight
"Start with the shopping, since that is the easy part."
The shopping can be done the day before cycle one. The dental check and the fertility referral cannot be done afterwards at all. Do the irreversible things first and the easy ones last, not the other way round.
"Everyone in the family knows what needs doing."
They know parts of it, differently, and each assumes someone else has handled the rest. That is precisely how the insurance paperwork goes unstarted. Name one owner for the sheet and one owner for each block.
"Every item has to be finished before treatment can start."
Only the tests and the two referrals genuinely gate the first cycle. The house, the shopping and some of the paperwork can continue afterwards. Ask your team which items actually hold things up.
"Once cycle one is done, the sheet can be thrown away."
The emergency block, the numbers, the medicine chart and the cycle dates stay useful for the whole course. Keep the sheet on the fridge and update it whenever the plan changes, with the date on each version.
Questions we are asked
Common questions about the checklist
Is there a ready-made sheet to download?
The version that works is the one you write, because the useful parts are your appointment dates, your hospital's numbers and your scheme's requirements. Copy the five blocks onto a sheet and ask your nurse to help fill the blanks.
Which items should we do first?
The dental check and the fertility referral, in the first days. Then the insurance paperwork and the tests. The house and the shopping come last, because those can be finished the day before cycle one.
Who should keep the sheet?
Usually the attendant rather than the patient. One person who books the appointments, chases the reports and carries the file. Shared ownership reliably produces items nobody has actually done.
What if we cannot finish everything in time?
Ask your team which items genuinely gate cycle one. Usually it is the tests and the two referrals. Say plainly what you have not managed rather than letting treatment start on an assumption that it was all done.
How long does the whole list take?
Commonly a fortnight, mostly spent waiting for appointments rather than doing things. Booking them together on the first day, instead of one at a time as you discover them, shortens it considerably.
We cannot read English. What do we do?
Ask for the list and the emergency block in Telugu or whichever language the household uses. This is a routine request. Never leave a translation gap between a family and an emergency decision.
What is most often missed?
The dental check, the fertility referral and starting the insurance early. All three are skipped for the same reason: they are rarely offered, so nobody knows to ask. All three are difficult or impossible to fix later.
Should we keep it after treatment starts?
Yes. The emergency block, the numbers, the medicine chart and the cycle dates stay useful throughout. Keep it on the fridge, date each version, and rewrite it whenever the plan changes.
Meet the Specialists
17+ senior cancer specialists. One panel for your case.
Trained at AIIMS, Tata Memorial, and leading international centres. Combined 150+ years of experience. Every complex case is reviewed by 3+ of them — together.
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Sources
- Cancer Research UK — Before you start chemotherapy
- Macmillan Cancer Support — Preparing for chemotherapy
- National Cancer Institute — Chemotherapy and You
This page is general information, not a prescription. Do not change or stop any treatment based on what you read here. If anything is worrying you, contact your own treating team — or call our helpline and we will help you reach the right specialist.
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