Psychosocial distress and quality of life among cancer patients in a tertiary hospital in Southeast Nigeria: a cross-sectional study

Background Psychosocial distress and quality of life (QoL) are critical considerations in cancer care, but evidence from Nigeria remain limited. This study assessed the prevalence, correlates, and predictors of psychosocial distress and QoL among adult cancer patients in a tertiary hospital in Southeast Nigeria. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted among 213 adult cancer patients at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital, Enugu. Participants completed interviewer-administered questionnaires capturing socio-demographic and clinical characteristics, psychosocial distress (DASS-21), QoL (WHOQOL-BREF), and psychosocial support. Descriptive statistics summarized patient characteristics, distress, QoL, and support utilization. Associations were examined using chi-square tests, and predictors were evaluated with multivariate ordinal logistic regression. Results Most participants were female (72.3%), married (81.7%), and aged ≥ 55 years (36.6%). Breast cancer was most common (32.9%), and chemotherapy was the predominant treatment (50.7%). Psychosocial distress levels were generally low: mean scores were 9.63 ± 8.04 (stress), 9.97 ± 8.78 (anxiety), and 7.07 ± 7.66 (depression). QoL was moderate overall (mean = 3.76 ± 0.59), highest in the environmental domain (4.55 ± 0.92) and lowest in the physical domain (2.96 ± 0.94). Psychosocial support was widely available (56.8%) and utilized (77.9%). Multivariate analysis showed that students had higher odds of psychosocial distress than unemployed participants (OR = 0.04, 95% CI − 6.41–−0.09, p = 0.044) Conclusions High utilization of psychosocial support is associated with perceived improvements in patients’ well-being. Policies should prioritize targeted psychosocial interventions for cancer patients to enhance quality of life and reduce psychosocial distress. Clinical trial number: Not applicable