The short answer
Nearly everyone living with cancer feels some level of distress, from mild worry to strong anxiety. The coping skills you need can change at different points in your cancer journey. Emotional and social support, counseling, and relaxation methods all help, and medicine is available when anxiety is severe.
Almost all people living with cancer have some feelings of distress, and levels differ from person to person.
The coping skills you need may change at different points, such as diagnosis, treatment, and remission.
Nearly half of people with cancer report a lot of distress.
Emotional and social support, counseling, and relaxation methods all help lower distress.
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The full explanation.
Distress is common, and it comes in many levels
Almost all people living with cancer have some feelings of distress. Distress is emotional suffering, and it can range from normal feelings of sadness and fear to more serious problems such as depression, anxiety, panic, or feeling alone or separate from friends and family.
People with cancer have different levels of distress. Some have a low level and are able to adjust to living with cancer. Others have higher levels. Nearly half of people with cancer report having a lot of distress. In general, the type of cancer does not change the amount of distress a person feels.
Distress can happen when you feel unable to manage or control the changes cancer brings. People tend to have less distress when the demands feel manageable or when they have a lot of support.
Coping skills change over time
Living with a cancer diagnosis involves many life adjustments. Normal adjustment means learning to cope with emotional distress and solve problems caused by cancer. The coping skills you need can change at different points, such as when you:
- hear the diagnosis
- receive cancer treatment
- finish cancer treatment
- learn the cancer is in remission
- learn the cancer has come back
- become a long-term cancer survivor
Each of these moments can bring different worries. For example, when treatment ends, people are often glad but may feel more anxious as they see their treatment team less often. During remission, people may feel distressed before follow-up visits because they worry the cancer has come back, and waiting for test results can be very stressful.
Most people adjust well over time. Some even say that surviving cancer gave them a greater appreciation for life and a better sense of what matters most.
What anxiety can feel like
Studies show that almost half of all people with cancer say they feel some anxiety, and about one-fourth say they feel a great deal of it. Signs of anxiety can include shortness of breath, a fast heartbeat, sweating, restlessness, muscle tightness, dizziness, nausea, and irritability.
Anxiety can have many causes beyond the diagnosis itself. Uncontrolled pain, other medical problems, certain tumors, some medicines, and withdrawal from habit-forming substances can all cause anxiety. Because of this, it is important to tell your doctor about anxious feelings, so they can find and treat the cause.
Support that helps
Studies show that people who are having trouble adjusting to cancer are helped by treatments that give them emotional and social support, including:
- relaxation training
- counseling or talk therapy
- cancer education sessions
- social support in a group setting
Benefits from these approaches include lower levels of depression, anxiety, and symptoms, along with feeling more hopeful. Other activities that may help include cognitive behavior therapy, problem-solving, support from friends and family, meditation, yoga, guided imagery, and breathing exercises.
Getting checked and getting help
Your doctor will usually screen you to find out if you need help adjusting to cancer. Screening is often done by asking how you feel and about your energy level, relationships, work, and finances. Your doctor may refer you to a social worker, a mental health professional, a palliative care specialist, or a counselor for further evaluation and support.
People who are having trouble adjusting are usually encouraged to try counseling before medicine. Counseling may not help everyone, though, and some people have severe anxiety that may need anti-anxiety or antidepressant medicine along with counseling. The right approach is a personal decision made with your health care provider.
Feelings of distress are a normal part of living with cancer, and support is always available. You do not have to manage these feelings on your own.
Words to know
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Common questions
▸What is the difference between distress and anxiety?
Distress is emotional suffering that can range from normal feelings of sadness and fear to more serious problems. Anxiety is strong fear or worry that can be caused by physical or emotional stress. Both are common in people with cancer, and support is available for either.
▸How common is distress in people with cancer?
Almost all people living with cancer have some feelings of distress. Nearly half of people with cancer report having a lot of distress. In general, the type of cancer does not change the amount of distress reported.
▸Will my feelings change over the course of cancer?
Yes. The coping skills you need change at different points, such as hearing the diagnosis, being treated, finishing treatment, learning the cancer is in remission, or becoming a long-term survivor. Each stage can bring different worries.
▸What kinds of support help with distress?
Studies show people are helped by emotional and social support, including relaxation training, counseling or talk therapy, cancer education sessions, and support in a group setting. These can lower depression, anxiety, and symptoms, and help people feel more hopeful.
▸How will my doctor know if I need help?
Your doctor will usually screen you by asking how you feel and about your energy level, relationships, work, and finances. They may refer you to a social worker, mental health professional, palliative care specialist, or counselor for further help.
▸Is medicine ever used for anxiety during cancer?
Sometimes. People who are having trouble adjusting are usually encouraged to try counseling first. When anxiety is severe, anti-anxiety or antidepressant medicine may be used along with counseling, under a doctor's care.
Questions to ask your doctor
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