Encouragement

Luckily my village showed up. My entire family stepped it up for me in a big way. My mom came to deliver food, pick-up and drop-off prescriptions, my cousins came to clean, my son's dad came by each day to bathe and get my son ready for bed and his bag packed for school the next day, my brother would baby sit so I could rest. Initially I thought wow this is going to be rough, but my family and friends truly provided a strong support system.

These are all great answers. Two things to add.
Many patients focus on statistics, they want to know what the stats are for recurrence and survival. Statistics DO NOT APPLY to individuals, they do not predict when you will die. This is important for everyone to understand, so, if possible, help your friend to ignore those stats. We will all die someday, but you need to remember that you are an individual with your own unique situation. There are countless thrivers out there who were told to go home and get their affairs in order. Instead, they chose to live another 10, 20 or 30 years. That being said, take control of your cancer and keep a positive attiude...it goes a long, long way in terms of living a long, cancer-free life.

Next, when a loved one is diagnosed, everyone wants to help, to visit and comfort. Often times, this is a burden on the patient. She may be tired, and VERY tired of retelling her story. Offer to man the phones, save her the stress. Offer to pick up her kids from school, offer to clean her house...be useful, not a burden.

Also, for anyone newly diagnosed, I encourage you to read my blog: Empowerment is the Key to a Successful Journey:
http://elynjacobs.blogspot.com/2011/05/empowerment-is-key-to-successful.html