ObjectiveTo evaluate the degree of psychological pain for cancer patients undergoing surgical treatment and analyze the contributory factors to provide the theoretical basis for psychological intervention for cancer patients with surgical treatment.MethodsThe clinical data of 455 cancer patients who received surgeries in our hospital from November 2020 to January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed, including 225 males and 230 females aged 53.80±13.50 years. By applying the method of convenient sampling, a cross-sectional survey was carried out by gathering the general information of the patients and evaluating their mental condition with the distress thermometer. The contributory factors were discussed by logistic regression analysis.ResultsThe score for the psychological pain of the patients was 4.11±2.49 points. The main factors contributing to the psychological pain were physical problems, emotional problems and family matters. The logistic regression analysis showed that the main factors related to the degree of psychological pain were cancer types (P=0.023), religious belief (P=0.046), number of niduses (P=0.016), respiratory status (P=0.004), medical expense (P=0.007), grief (P=0.001) and anxiety (P=0.040).ConclusionNearly half of the patients have been subjected to apparent psychological pain, and emotion and physical problems are the main factors. It is crucial to pay attention to the patients’ mental problems, seek convenient tools for psychological evaluation, and take actions to deal with the psychological problems and physical symptoms.