Post job

What does an oncology nurse do?

Updated January 8, 2025
9 min read
Quoted expert
Earlene Masi
What does an oncology nurse do

Oncology Nurses work with medical practitioners to take care of cancer patients in various settings (hospitals, clinics, etc.). The job requires compassion and personal fortitude to deal with their patients' suffering from such a profound illness. They are required to have an associate's degree in nursing and an RN license. Oncology Nurses provide professional care and coordinate the delivery of oncology treatments. They also take care of patients assigned to them in a medical oncology facility and ensure that hospital or department and University policies are followed.

On this page

Oncology nurse responsibilities

Here are examples of responsibilities from real oncology nurse resumes:

  • Manage patient pain relief and sedation by providing pharmacological and non-pharmacological intervention, monitor patient response and record care plans accordingly.
  • Gain significant experience in diverse areas of nursing process for oncology and transplant patients; administer chemotherapy and blood products.
  • Initiate CPR on nonresponsive patients.
  • Provide intravenous therapy in a home bound setting to include simple chemo therapy and PICC care along with other VADS.
  • Provide professional nursing care for patients as it relates to provider orders and chemotherapy administration and education.
  • Provide care to rehabilitation patients on rehab unit assist in activities of daily living, occupational therapy and physical therapy.
  • Administer chemotherapy and therapeutic medications to adult oncology and hematology patients within NCCN guidelines as well as in clinical trial protocols.
  • Perform triage, assessments, lab interpretation, hospital admissions, rooming patients, medication management, chemotherapy preparation and administration.
  • Provide CPR training to fellow healthcare professionals.
  • Show compassion; help families through the grieving process.
  • Initiate, monitor, and terminate therapies including medications, antibiotics, and hydration therapy.
  • Assess competency of HHA, PCW, LPN, RN, and family members and educate as needed.
  • Provide in home assessments of members, decide how many hours the patient is to receive HHA or PCA services.
  • Conduct patient examination, assessment and interview prior to surgery.
  • Conduct clinical reviews of oncology patient therapy base on roadmap and protocol guidelines.

Oncology nurse skills and personality traits

We calculated that 34% of Oncology Nurses are proficient in Patients, Chemotherapy, and Medical Oncology. They’re also known for soft skills such as Communication skills, Compassion, and Detail oriented.

We break down the percentage of Oncology Nurses that have these skills listed on their resume here:

  • Patients, 34%

    Provided support and education to patients on limited distribution Oncology medications, ensuring adherence and proper administration and discarding of therapy.

  • Chemotherapy, 7%

    Performed triage, assessments, lab interpretation, hospital admissions, rooming patients, medication management, chemotherapy preparation and administration.

  • Medical Oncology, 5%

    Act as liaison between medical oncology and radiation oncology offices.

  • Patient Education, 4%

    Maintained a solid knowledge base of clinical oncology to facilitate patient education and information.

  • Hematology Oncology, 3%

    Served as inpatient staff during EPIC EMR conversion on a pediatric hematology oncology unit.

  • Patient Outcomes, 3%

    Evaluate and promote achievement of individual patient outcomes through complete assessments.

"patients," "chemotherapy," and "medical oncology" are among the most common skills that oncology nurses use at work. You can find even more oncology nurse responsibilities below, including:

Communication skills. The most essential soft skill for an oncology nurse to carry out their responsibilities is communication skills. This skill is important for the role because "registered nurses must be able to communicate effectively with patients in order to understand their concerns and evaluate their health conditions." Additionally, an oncology nurse resume shows how their duties depend on communication skills: "provided effective communication with medical oncology offices to ensure coordination of care plan for chemotherapy, radiation therapy and terminal care. "

Compassion. Many oncology nurse duties rely on compassion. "registered nurses should be caring and empathetic when working with patients.," so an oncology nurse will need this skill often in their role. This resume example is just one of many ways oncology nurse responsibilities rely on compassion: "showed compassion; helped families through the grieving process. "

Detail oriented. This is an important skill for oncology nurses to perform their duties. For an example of how oncology nurse responsibilities depend on this skill, consider that "registered nurses must be precise because they must ensure that patients get the correct treatments and medicines at the right time." This excerpt from a resume also shows how vital it is to everyday roles and responsibilities of an oncology nurse: "care of the bone marrow transplant and oncology patient requires stringent monitoring and assessment skills with detailed documentation. ".

Emotional stability. oncology nurse responsibilities often require "emotional stability." The duties that rely on this skill are shown by the fact that "registered nurses need emotional resilience and the ability to cope with human suffering, emergencies, and other stressors." This resume example shows what oncology nurses do with emotional stability on a typical day: "educate patients about surgical after care palliative care for the dying provide emotional support for the families. "

Organizational skills. Another common skill required for oncology nurse responsibilities is "organizational skills." This skill comes up in the duties of oncology nurses all the time, as "nurses often work with multiple patients who have a variety of health needs." An excerpt from a real oncology nurse resume shows how this skill is central to what an oncology nurse does: "plan and deliver education programs to staff on timely issues related to patient care, quality, organizational and informaticsinitiatives. "

Physical stamina. Lastly, "physical stamina" is an important element of what an oncology nurse does. Oncology nurse responsibilities require this skill because "nurses should be comfortable performing physical tasks, such as lifting patients." This resume example highlights how oncology nurse duties rely on this skill: "obtained vital signs, physical assessments , medication administration, wound care and assistance with radiation treatments. "

See the full list of oncology nurse skills

The three companies that hire the most oncology nurses are:

Choose from 10+ customizable oncology nurse resume templates

Build a professional oncology nurse resume in minutes. Our AI resume writing assistant will guide you through every step of the process, and you can choose from 10+ resume templates to create your oncology nurse resume.
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume
Oncology Nurse Resume

Compare different oncology nurses

Oncology nurse vs. Nurse coordinator

A nurse coordinator is primarily in charge of overseeing all nurses and their activities in a hospital or clinic. Their responsibilities include managing and rotating schedules, assessing nurse performance, organizing nursing programs, and developing strategies to optimize procedures. They may also assist patients and answer inquiries, studying their conditions to develop specific care plans to suit their needs. Furthermore, as a nurse coordinator, it is essential to lead and encourage teams to reach goals, all while implementing the facility's policies and regulations.

If we compare the average oncology nurse annual salary with that of a nurse coordinator, we find that nurse coordinators typically earn a $6,668 higher salary than oncology nurses make annually.Even though oncology nurses and nurse coordinators are distinct careers, a few of the skills required for both jobs are similar. For example, both careers require patients, chemotherapy, and medical oncology in the day-to-day roles and responsibilities.

These skill sets are where the common ground ends though. The responsibilities of an oncology nurse are more likely to require skills like "patient outcomes," "symptom management," "treatment options," and "supportive care." On the other hand, a job as a nurse coordinator requires skills like "cpr," "customer service," "emr," and "critical care." As you can see, what employees do in each career varies considerably.

Nurse coordinators earn the highest salaries when working in the health care industry, with an average yearly salary of $80,569. On the other hand, oncology nurses are paid more in the health care industry with an average salary of $85,848.The education levels that nurse coordinators earn slightly differ from oncology nurses. In particular, nurse coordinators are 1.2% more likely to graduate with a Master's Degree than an oncology nurse. Additionally, they're 0.1% more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

Oncology nurse vs. Registered nurse charge nurse

A registered charge nurse is responsible for supervising nurses' workflow in a particular department or area, ensuring every patient gets the proper care that they need. A registered charge nurse has the discretion to direct tasks, arrange schedules, and monitor patients, such as in the aspects of admission and discharge. Furthermore, a registered charge nurse must maintain an active line of communication and coordination among nurses, physicians, and other personnel involved as the conditions in a hospital can be unpredictable.

A career as a registered nurse charge nurse brings a lower average salary when compared to the average annual salary of an oncology nurse. In fact, registered nurses charge nurses salary is $1,030 lower than the salary of oncology nurses per year.Only some things about these jobs are the same. Take their skills, for example. Oncology nurses and registered nurses charge nurses both require similar skills like "patients," "chemotherapy," and "medical oncology" to carry out their responsibilities.

While some skills are similar in these professions, other skills aren't so similar. For example, resumes show us that oncology nurse responsibilities requires skills like "hematology oncology," "patient outcomes," "symptom management," and "quality care." But a registered nurse charge nurse might use other skills in their typical duties, such as, "bls," "cpr," "acls," and "resident care."

On average, registered nurses charge nurses earn a lower salary than oncology nurses. Some industries support higher salaries in each profession. Interestingly enough, registered nurses charge nurses earn the most pay in the health care industry with an average salary of $68,929. Whereas oncology nurses have higher pay in the health care industry, with an average salary of $85,848.Average education levels between the two professions vary. Registered nurses charge nurses tend to reach similar levels of education than oncology nurses. In fact, they're 4.6% less likely to graduate with a Master's Degree and 0.1% less likely to earn a Doctoral Degree.

What technology do you think will become more important and prevalent for oncology nurses in the next 3-5 years?

Earlene MasiEarlene Masi LinkedIn profile

Assistant Professor of Exercise Science, Anderson University

Since exercise science is so multifaceted, the technology/research that will become more important and prevalent in the next 3-5 years will depend on the area of expertise in which you are working. In the fitness industry, I think we will continue to see an increase in wearable technology and various fitness apps. We will also continue to see advancements in wearable technology use within the healthcare system, allowing for remote patient monitoring.

Oncology nurse vs. Registered nurse supervisor

A Registered Nurse Supervisor oversees a team of registered nurses in a hospital or clinic, making sure that all operations are efficient and up to standard. Moreover, they are responsible for the daily management of nurses, such as when it comes to evaluation, development, and assigning schedules and patients. Aside from supervising and ensuring that everything is running smoothly in their field, they also have to communicate and coordinate with physicians and even families of patients. The responsibilities of a Nurse Supervisor is challenging; this is why they must be proactive and excellent at communication.

An average registered nurse supervisor eans a higher salary compared to the average salary of oncology nurses. The difference in salaries amounts to registered nurse supervisors earning a $1,802 higher average salary than oncology nurses.By looking over several oncology nurses and registered nurse supervisors resumes, we found that both roles require similar skills in their day-to-day duties, such as "patients," "chemotherapy," and "medical oncology." But beyond that, the careers look very different.

There are many key differences between these two careers, including some of the skills required to perform responsibilities within each role. For example, an oncology nurse is likely to be skilled in "patient outcomes," "symptom management," "quality care," and "clinical trials," while a typical registered nurse supervisor is skilled in "cpr," "acute care," "resident care," and "customer service."

Registered nurse supervisors make a very good living in the professional industry with an average annual salary of $78,568. On the other hand, oncology nurses are paid the highest salary in the health care industry, with average annual pay of $85,848.When it comes to education, registered nurse supervisors tend to earn similar degree levels compared to oncology nurses. In fact, they're 2.8% less likely to earn a Master's Degree, and 0.2% less likely to graduate with a Doctoral Degree.

Oncology nurse vs. Nurse clinician

A nurse clinician is a health expert who provides care and assistance to patients in hospitals, clinics, or similar establishments. Among their responsibilities include preparing equipment and documents, administering medication, monitoring the patient's condition, maintaining charts, and regularly reporting to physicians. In some establishments, they may also perform administrative support tasks such as answering calls and correspondence, preparing and processing documents, and organizing records. Moreover, a nurse clinician must maintain an active communication line with fellow medical staff to provide optimal services to patients.

Nurse clinicians typically earn lower pay than oncology nurses. On average, nurse clinicians earn a $7,213 lower salary per year.While both oncology nurses and nurse clinicians complete day-to-day tasks using similar skills like patients, chemotherapy, and medical oncology, the two careers vary in some skills.Each job also requires different skills to carry out their responsibilities. An oncology nurse uses "symptom management," "quality care," "community resources," and "treatment options." Nurse clinicians are more likely to have duties that require skills in "cpr," "emergency situations," "educational programs," and "acls. "nurse clinicians enjoy the best pay in the education industry, with an average salary of $73,633. For comparison, oncology nurses earn the highest salary in the health care industry.The average resume of nurse clinicians showed that they earn similar levels of education compared to oncology nurses. So much so that theyacirc;euro;trade;re 2.1% more likely to earn a Master's Degree and more likely to earn a Doctoral Degree by 0.4%.

Types of oncology nurse

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Research Team
Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Browse healthcare practitioner and technical jobs