How to deal with............?

How would a person react if one fine day he/she got to know that a near-dear one has been diagnozed with cancer?It was shattering when it happened to me. It started off with 'Oh lets go the doctor'; when my father had felt some discomfort. Then it was 'oh, biopsy report' and a few sleepless nights, waiting and praying.And then the result and you have darkness in front of your eyes. You dont know what to do. "Squamous Cell Carcinoma" is what the report said. You wonder what it means. A search on the Internet does not give you much respite.How does one give hope to a person who is mentally? How do one deal with a situation like this?