A cancer diagnosis can induce psychological and emotional stress reactions that can be summarised by the term ‘distress’, with presentations ranging from fear and panic to anxiety and depression. Despite the high prevalence of distress among people with cancer, many patients continue to report significant unmet supportive care needs at all stages of disease.

This article reports the findings of a literature review that explored the barriers to the delivery and uptake of psychosocial care in adult cancer services. One of its conclusions is that people with cancer are reluctant to accept psychosocial care from mental health professionals, preferring to receive it from nurses. This highlights the importance of nurses’ ability to offer psychosocial interventions during routine appointments, an ability hindered by a lack of skills, training, time, privacy and organisational guidance, as well as by a lack of emphasis on self-care within the nursing culture.