Mental health disorder after cancer diagnosis raises risk of death

Researchers report that patients diagnosed with cancer who subsequently develop a mental disorder are at an increased risk of all-cause death.

The findings were published on Feb. 23, 2026 in CANCER, a journal of the American Cancer Society.

“Over the past several years, we’ve had an increasing appreciation for the important relationship between cancer, its treatment, and mental health,” said lead author Julian Hong, MD, MS, of the University of California, San Francisco. “This study reproduces our prior work by leveraging the shared experience across the University of California system, reinforcing a relationship between mental health conditions and mortality for patients with cancer and highlighting the need to prioritize and manage mental health.”

The researchers used The University of California Data Discovery Platform, in which data on all patients at University of California–affiliated hospitals are recorded.

They identified adult patients with a cancer diagnosis and no documented mental health disorder prior to cancer diagnosis between 2013 and 2023.

Among 371,189 patients, 39,687 (10.6%) developed a mental health disorder within the first year after cancer diagnosis.

After adjusting the data for factors which might affect the primary outcome, the researchers reported that a mental health disorder diagnosis was linked to a 51% higher risk of all-cause death in the initial 1–3 years after cancer diagnosis. This elevated risk decreased to a 17% higher risk after 3–5 years. Then it disappeared.

The authors concluded, “Patients with cancer who experience a mental health condition are at an increased risk of all-cause mortality. This reinforces and emphasizes existing recommendations for prompt screening and management of distress and mental health following a cancer diagnosis.