Communication of a cancer diagnosis: patients' perceptions of when they were first told they had cancer.

Fifty consecutive cancer patients cared for by a palliative medicine program were interviewed concerning the initial communication of their diagnosis. The majority of patients were satisfied with the manner and the circumstances in which the information was imparted. A minority of women were significantly more unhappy than men about the manner in which they were told. Sophisticated techniques are available to help physicians impart bad news effectively and humanely.