Psycho-oncology counselling at DietXP

Emotional support and counselling for people with cancer and their families

Cancer affects how you feel, sleep, eat and relate to the people around you. DietXP's psycho-oncologist, Fathimath Naeema Nasreen, offers online counselling for adults with cancer and for the family members who care for them, in India and for Indian families abroad, alongside your treatment and nutrition care.

Ask about a session How it works

WhatsApp is for questions and booking. It is not monitored around the clock. In an emergency in India, call 112. More urgent-help options

Psycho-oncologist Fathimath Naeema Nasreen speaking at a lectern beside a slide titled Career in Psycho-Oncology: An Introduction to the Field
Fathimath Naeema Nasreen, DietXP's psycho-oncologist, giving a talk on psycho-oncology.
Who it is for
Adults with cancer and adult caregivers
Sessions
45 minutes, online, one to one
Fee in India
₹4,956 incl. GST per session
Living abroad
Fee in your currency
Booking
On WhatsApp

When it helps

What emotional support can help with

Examples of what people bring to a counselling session. You do not need a diagnosis, and you do not need to have everything worked out before you get in touch.

If you have cancer

  • Difficulty coping with a cancer diagnosis
  • Fear and worry around scans, results and appointments
  • Low mood, anger, guilt or feeling numb
  • Changes in your body, appearance and sense of who you are
  • Tiredness, poor sleep or pain wearing you down
  • Trouble concentrating or remembering things
  • Tension around food and eating at home
  • Life after treatment, and fear of the cancer coming back

If you care for someone with cancer

  • Caregiver burnout and burden
  • Exhaustion, guilt and constant worry
  • Pressure and arguments around food and care
  • Changes in your relationship with the person you care for
  • Balancing caring with work and family
  • Fear of loss, and grief

New physical symptoms, sudden confusion or rapid weight loss need medical review first. Emotional support works alongside that care.

You are not alone

Is it normal to struggle emotionally with cancer?

Yes. Feeling overwhelmed, afraid, angry, sad, lonely or guilty is a common reaction to a cancer diagnosis, to treatment and to life afterwards.4 These feelings are not a sign of weakness, and they do not mean you are coping badly.

1 in 3

In a study of more than 2,000 adults with cancer, about one in three had a mental health condition in the previous four weeks, most often anxiety or difficulty adjusting to the illness.1

It may help to talk to someone if

  • Worry or low mood is getting in the way of sleep, eating, work or time with family
  • You feel stuck, numb or unlike yourself for weeks at a time
  • Fear about scans, results or the cancer coming back takes up a lot of your day
  • Family relationships feel strained, or it is hard to talk about what is happening
  • Treatment decisions, or keeping up with treatment, feel too hard to face
  • You care for someone with cancer and feel exhausted or alone

If you are thinking about harming yourself, do not wait for a session. Call 112, or Tele-MANAS on 14416 for free mental health support, 24 hours a day.5

How it works

How online counselling works

Nothing is booked until you have agreed the sessions, the fee and the timing.

  1. Message DietXP on WhatsApp

    Tell us your name and a good time to talk. You do not need to share medical details in this first message.

  2. A short call to check the fit

    We confirm whether sessions suit your situation, and agree the language, the timing and the number of sessions.

  3. Your first session with Naeema

    A 45-minute online conversation about what has brought you here, your treatment and daily life, and what you would like help with.

  4. Agree the next steps together

    You decide whether to continue, and for how many sessions. Sometimes the right next step is a different kind of support or a referral, and she will say so.

Fees

Session fees and programmes

Every session is 45 minutes, online and one to one with Naeema. The fee depends on where the person having the sessions lives, not on who pays.

In India

₹4,956 per session

Including 18% GST (₹4,200 + ₹756 GST)

Programmes of 4 to 12 sessions

Each programme is a set number of 45-minute sessions and costs less than booking them one at a time: 3% less for 4 sessions, rising to 12% less for 12. Totals for sessions in India, including 18% GST:

  1. 4sessions

    Supportive Psychotherapy

    Once a week

    ₹4,807 per session

    Save 3%4 single sessions ₹19,824

    ₹19,229

    ₹16,296 + ₹2,933 GST

  2. 6sessions

    Focused Psychotherapy

    Once a week

    ₹4,708 per session

    Save 5%6 single sessions ₹29,736

    ₹28,249

    ₹23,940 + ₹4,309 GST

  3. 8sessions

    Extensive Psychotherapy

    Once a week, with the final session after two weeks

    ₹4,609 per session

    Save 7%8 single sessions ₹39,648

    ₹36,873

    ₹31,248 + ₹5,625 GST

  4. 10sessions

    Comprehensive Psychotherapy

    Once a week, with the last two sessions at a two-week interval

    ₹4,460 per session

    Save 10%10 single sessions ₹49,560

    ₹44,604

    ₹37,800 + ₹6,804 GST

  5. 12sessions

    Complete Psychotherapy Package

    Once a week, with the last two sessions at a two-week interval

    ₹4,361 per session

    Save 12%12 single sessions ₹59,472

    ₹52,335

    ₹44,352 + ₹7,983 GST

Living outside India?

Your country's page shows the session fee in your local currency:

Somewhere else? Ask us on WhatsApp and we will check first that sessions can go ahead where you live. We do not currently offer sessions to people living in the UAE, Kuwait, Malaysia, Germany or the UK. Booking from abroad for a parent or relative who lives in India? The India fee applies to their sessions.

You do not need to choose a programme before you get in touch. Nothing is booked until you have agreed the sessions, the fee and the timing.

Ask about a session on WhatsApp

Psycho-oncology

What is psycho-oncology, and what does a psycho-oncologist do?

Psycho-oncology is the part of cancer care that looks after the emotional, psychological and social effects of cancer, for the person with cancer and for their family. A psycho-oncologist is a psychology professional trained to help people cope with those effects, from diagnosis through treatment and afterwards.

What a psycho-oncologist does

  • Listens to your concerns and helps you make sense of what you are going through
  • Teaches practical ways to manage worry, low mood, poor sleep and stress
  • Helps with changes to your body, identity, relationships and plans
  • Supports family members and caregivers in their own right
  • Looks at memory and concentration concerns and suggests strategies
  • Works alongside your oncologist and dietitian, and refers you on when you need a different kind of help

Talking therapies such as cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) are among the approaches the American Society of Clinical Oncology recommends for anxiety and depression after cancer.2

Psycho-oncologist, psychiatrist or counsellor: who does what?

ProfessionalWhat they doPrescribes medicines
Psycho-oncologistA psychology professional trained in cancer care: talking therapy, psychological assessment and coping supportNo
PsychiatristA medical doctor who diagnoses and treats mental health conditions, including with medicinesYes
CounsellorSupportive conversations and guidance; training and scope varyNo
OncologistA doctor who treats the cancer itselfYes, for the cancer

Many people see more than one of these professionals. At DietXP, sessions are with a psycho-oncologist; if medicines might help, Naeema can suggest seeing a psychiatrist.

Sessions

What happens in the first session

You can start with a feeling, a practical problem, a family worry or a question. Naeema may ask about your treatment, your routines, the people who support you and what matters most to you right now.

By the end, you should have a clearer picture of what you would like help with, and of whether further sessions, other support or a referral makes sense. Before any further sessions, the approach, the number of sessions and their fee, the practical arrangements and the limits of confidentiality are explained to you.

Sessions draw on methods such as cognitive behavioural therapy, acceptance and commitment therapy, supportive therapy and relaxation techniques, chosen around your needs. You do not need to know which one you want.

Scanxiety

Scanxiety and fear of cancer coming back

Many people feel anxious in the days before a scan or a test result, a pattern often called scanxiety. After treatment, worry that the cancer will return is also common: it is described as the most common unmet need among cancer survivors, and it is found across cancer types, countries and time since diagnosis.3

Counselling can help you notice what sets the fear off, cut down the time it takes up, plan how to handle scan days and results, and get back to the things that matter to you. If a symptom worries you, contact your treating team first; counselling works alongside medical follow-up, not instead of it.

For families

Counselling for cancer caregivers

Caring for a parent, partner or child with cancer can be exhausting. Many caregivers put their own feelings aside, feel guilty for being tired, or struggle with pressure from relatives and with decisions about food and care.

Caregivers can book their own sessions with Naeema, whether or not the person they care for has sessions. A caregiver's sessions are private and separate: they do not give access to the patient's information, and the patient's sessions stay private too.

Caregiver sessions can cover

  • Exhaustion, guilt and looking after yourself
  • Disagreements in the family about food, treatment and care
  • Talking with your loved one, and with children, about cancer
  • Fear of loss, and grief before and after a death

Care that fits together

Alongside your treatment and nutrition care

Each professional has a different job. With your permission, they can share what is relevant while keeping their roles separate.

Your psycho-oncologist

Feelings, coping, relationships, identity and the worries you choose to talk about.

Your oncology dietitian

Eating, drinking, symptoms that affect food, and weight and nutrition during and after treatment.

Your treating team

Cancer treatment, medicines, and the medical causes of symptoms such as pain, nausea or confusion.

If you also see a DietXP oncology dietitian, your dietitian does not see your session notes. Only what you agree to share is passed on.

Oncology nutrition in IndiaFamilies living abroad

Privacy

Privacy and confidentiality

  • What you say in sessions is confidential. The limits, such as a serious risk to your safety or someone else's, are explained before you start.
  • Family members and your dietitian only hear what you agree to share.
  • A caregiver's own sessions are kept separate from the patient's; booking one does not give access to the other person's information.
  • Booking messages use neutral wording, and you can tell us how you prefer to be contacted.
  • Nothing you share in sessions is used for marketing or advertising.

If you need urgent help

This is not an emergency service, and WhatsApp is not monitored around the clock. If you or someone else is in immediate danger, or has a medical emergency:

  • In India, call 112 or go to the nearest emergency department.
  • For mental health support in India, call Tele-MANAS on 14416 (toll-free 1800-89-14416), free and available 24 hours a day. It does not replace emergency services when someone is in immediate danger.
  • Outside India, call the local emergency number for the place where you are.

Your psycho-oncologist

Meet Fathimath Naeema Nasreen

Fathimath Naeema Nasreen

Psycho-oncologist, DietXP

A fellowship-trained psycho-oncologist. She trained in psycho-oncology at Malabar Cancer Centre, holds an MSc in Psychology (Clinical) and a BSc in Clinical Psychology from Amity University Maharashtra, and worked as a psycho-oncologist in the geriatric clinic at Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, from 2024 to 2026. She also works as a consultant with HCAH, Mumbai, in its online rare disease and IBD programme, and is a co-author of the GOCog study protocol in BMC Geriatrics (2026).

  • Fellowship in Psychooncology
  • MSc Psychology (Clinical)
  • Formerly Tata Memorial
  • BMC Geriatrics 2026
Read her full profile

Good to know

What this service does not do

  • It is not an emergency or crisis service.
  • It does not prescribe medicines or replace psychiatric care when that is needed; Naeema can suggest a referral.
  • It does not replace your cancer treatment or your hospital's own support services.
  • It does not promise a set result. A programme sets the number of sessions, not the outcome.
  • Sessions are for adults aged 18 and over. Support for children and teenagers is not offered through this service.

FAQ

Questions about emotional support and counselling

What does a psycho-oncologist do?
A psycho-oncologist helps people with cancer and their families cope with its emotional, psychological and social effects: worry, low mood, fear of recurrence, body image, relationships and memory or concentration concerns. They use talking therapies and practical strategies, work alongside the treating team, and refer on when a different kind of help is needed.
Is counselling helpful for people with cancer?
For many people, yes. The American Society of Clinical Oncology found that psychological, educational and psychosocial support improved depression and anxiety in adults who have had cancer.2 How much it helps varies from person to person, and sessions are shaped around your needs.
Who can book a session?
Adults aged 18 and over who have cancer, have had cancer, or care for someone with cancer, in India or abroad. If you live outside India, your country's page shows the fee in your local currency, and we confirm that sessions can go ahead where you live before you pay. We do not currently offer sessions to people living in the UAE, Kuwait, Malaysia, Germany or the UK.
Do I need a referral or a diagnosis?
No. You can get in touch with a concern or a question. If another kind of help would suit you better, you will be told.
How much does a session cost?
In India, a 45-minute session is ₹4,956, including 18% GST (₹4,200 + ₹756). Programmes cost less than single sessions: 3% less for 4 sessions, 5% for 6, 7% for 8, 10% for 10 and 12% for 12. For example, Supportive Psychotherapy (4 sessions) is ₹19,229 including GST instead of ₹19,824. If you live outside India, your fee is shown in your local currency on your country's page. The fee follows where the person having the sessions lives, not who pays. See session fees and programmes. You do not pay until you have agreed the sessions, the fee and the timing.
How long are sessions, and how many will I need?
Each session is 45 minutes. Programmes run from 4 sessions (Supportive Psychotherapy) to 12 (Complete Psychotherapy Package), once a week, with the last sessions spaced two weeks apart in the longer programmes. You and Naeema agree what suits you and review how things are going together.
Are sessions online, and in which languages?
Sessions are online and one to one, so you can join from home. Tell us your preferred language when you get in touch and we will confirm what is possible.
How can I cope with fear of cancer coming back?
It helps to notice what sets the fear off, limit time spent checking your body or searching online, plan how you will handle scan days, and talk to someone about it. If the fear takes up a lot of your day, counselling can help; see scanxiety and fear of recurrence. New or worrying symptoms should always go to your treating team.
How can I support a family member with cancer emotionally?
Listen more than you advise, ask what help they want, let them talk about hard things without rushing to reassure them, and look after yourself too. Caregivers can book their own sessions if they are struggling; see counselling for caregivers.
Can a family member join, or book for themselves?
A family member can join a session if you both agree. Caregivers can also book their own sessions about their own concerns; these are kept separate from the patient's.
Will my dietitian or my family see what I say?
No. What you say in sessions stays confidential. Only what you agree to share is passed on, apart from safety and legal exceptions that are explained before you start.
Can I have sessions while I get support at my hospital?
Yes. These sessions sit alongside your hospital care. If you already see a psychologist or psychiatrist there, tell Naeema so that your care fits together.
Is this a crisis service?
No. WhatsApp and this page are not monitored around the clock. In an emergency in India, call 112 or go to the nearest emergency department. Tele-MANAS on 14416 offers free mental health support by phone, 24 hours a day. Outside India, call your local emergency number.
Does everyone with cancer need therapy?
No. Many people cope with the support around them. Sessions are there if and when you want them, and you can ask a question first before deciding.

Sources

Sources

  1. Mehnert A, Brähler E, Faller H, et al. Four-week prevalence of mental disorders in patients with cancer across major tumor entities. Journal of Clinical Oncology. 2014;32(31):3540-6. doi:10.1200/JCO.2014.56.0086
  2. Andersen BL, Lacchetti C, Ashing K, et al. Management of anxiety and depression in adult survivors of cancer: ASCO guideline update. Journal of Clinical Oncology. 2023;41(18):3426-53. doi:10.1200/JCO.23.00293
  3. Luigjes-Huizer YL, Tauber NM, Humphris G, et al. What is the prevalence of fear of cancer recurrence in cancer survivors and patients? A systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis. Psycho-Oncology. 2022;31(6):879-92. doi:10.1002/pon.5921
  4. National Cancer Institute. Emotions and cancer. cancer.gov/about-cancer/coping/feelings
  5. Directorate General of Health Services, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare. National Mental Health Programme: Tele-MANAS. dghs.mohfw.gov.in

Written by DietXP. Last updated 26 September 2026. This page is general information about a support service. It is not a diagnosis or medical advice, and sessions sit alongside, not instead of, your cancer treatment.

Emotional support

Talk to us about emotional support

Send DietXP a message on WhatsApp with your name and a good time to talk. In India, a 45-minute session is ₹4,956 including GST; if you live abroad, your country's page shows the fee in your currency. We explain how online counselling works and the next available times before anything is booked.

Ask about a session Meet Naeema