What happens after distress screening? Patterns of supportive care service utilization among oncology patients identified through a systematic screening protocol.

Purpose: While distress screening is important for identifying unmet needs of cancer patients, less is known about referral and uptake of supportive care services among distressed patients. The current analysis examined screen-based rates of referral to supportive care and explored demographic and clinical correlates of referral uptake.

Methods: We tracked distress screens completed by a varied group of cancer patients receiving outpatient care at a National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated cancer center during a 1-month period.