Navigating Early Cancer Care: Michelle Mollica, PhD, RN, on Patient Support

The initial 48 to 72 hours following a cancer diagnosis are often marked by emotional turmoil, fear, and profound information overload. As patients and their loved ones face immediate uncertainty, they frequently turn to online searches, artificial intelligence, and unverified digital resources while awaiting clinical appointments or test results. In this environment, oncology nurses play a critical role as primary information anchors, emotional advocates, and compassionate guides.

In this Q&A, Michelle Mollica, PhD, MPH, RN, OCN, a Medical Advisory Council member at Cancer Hope Network and Associate Professor at the Medical University of South Carolina, shares insights on how nurse training must evolve. Mollica highlights practical strategies for validating patient distress, addressing online health misinformation, and connecting families with verified community networks and peer support programs. By prioritizing key information during the post-diagnosis period, nurses can stabilize patient anxiety and establish a foundation of trust before clinical treatment plans begin.

The first few days post-diagnosis can often be defined for a patient and their loved ones by information overload. How do you think it's best to train oncology nurses to prioritize what a patient needs to know in that first crucial 48-hour period after diagnosis?

Often, when people are diagnosed with a new cancer or have a new diagnosis of cancer, they're getting a ton of information from a lot of different places, and oncology nurses really need to first be aware that these patients and their families are overwhelmed. They are getting a lot of information really fast. They're also looking things up online on their own, and so I think it's really the oncology nurse's job to both validate how they're feeling and also provide credible resources along the way, and so I think that when we think about training for oncology nurses, we really need to teach our newer nurses or nurses that are new to oncology that this happens and that they're getting information from lots of different places, but also that they need to be very patient and kind with both caregivers and people with a new cancer diagnosis, point them in the direction of credible resources, and also to know and be aware of the community resources that exist, like peer support.

How can nurses serve as the primary information anchor to prevent patients from seeking potentially misleading or incomplete or overwhelming information online?

The fact of the matter is that they are getting test results and imaging results online sooner than they are coming in for an appointment or being seen for an appointment, and so often patients look this information up on Google or on other websites or with AI. I don't think that we can prevent that from happening. I think what we need to do is say that there's a plethora of information out there — some of it might be correct, a lot of it might not. And so, having patients and their families recognize that there's a lot of misinformation out there, and that the credible sources are the ones you want to make sure you're talking to — the American Cancer Society, Cancer Hope Network, other places where they have resources on their website and are credible and verified.

The first 48 to 72 hours can often come with a lot of fear and uncertainty. What specific psychosocial interventions can nurses implement in that early period of time to help stabilize a patient's emotional state before the clinical plan fully kicks in?

One of the best things that a nurse can do is assess a patient and their caregiver's mental health status, to make sure that they are in a place that is safe from a mental well-being perspective, and then I think connecting them to community resources. So, Cancer Hope Network has peer support that I think is a great example of this type of resource where they can be paired with somebody who has been there and who has gone through that time period. I also think when you think about interventions linking patients and caregivers with mental health counselors and therapy, there's often a lot of online resources in terms of virtual therapy based on their insurance or their resources and access.

It's important for patients to identify questions for their care team. How do nurses help patients articulate their concerns and ensure they feel empowered to ask questions during initial consultations?

There are a lot of great resources online in terms of questions you might ask your providers, but really I think nurses have the ability to do that. Nurse navigators are another great resource, especially in that time period between diagnosis and starting treatment, where they can give you a resource packet, and they're available at most cancer centers, of questions to ask, but I think really encouraging patients and their families that this is the time for you to understand what your options are and to know what the treatment course and what to expect really are.

Given that a second opinion is a critical consideration in this process, how should nurses navigate this conversation with patients to ensure they feel supported in exploring all options without feeling like they're undermining their current care team?

Standard practice really is to get a second opinion, and so oncology nurses can, and most often do, but should encourage their patients to seek out a second opinion, and they should remind patients that this does not mean that they don't trust the provider, the oncologist's opinion or course of treatment or plan, but that they are confirming that and confirming they feel most comfortable. It does not mean that they have to seek care from that other provider. It could mean that they're just getting an opinion to make sure they're on the right course of treatment. But really, it should be standard practice.