BACKGROUND The mental status of gynecologic patients has an important influence on their quality of life(QOL).Although high-quality QOL studies into breast cancer patients have been performed internationally,few QOL studies have examined patients with gynecological cancer.AIM To investigate the brief cancer-related worry inventory(BCWI)could evaluate the mental status of gynecological patients.METHODS Between July 2018 and December 2018,19 consecutive gynecological cancer patients were prospectively recruited for this study.The BCWI is a 15-item selfreported questionnaire that assesses cancer-related worries on a numeric scale(0–100).RESULTS The high BCWI group was significantly younger than the low BCWI group.Regarding social status,the absence of a spouse and children was significantly more common in the high BCWI group than in the low BCWI group.The operation time was longer in the worsening BCWI group than in the stable BCWI group(305.3±140.5 min vs 171.1±97.2 min;P=0.026).CONCLUSION Being young,having no family,and a long operation time were found to be risk factors for increased anxiety.Therefore,gynecological cancer patients should be assessed using the BCWI,and specific perioperative mental care should be considered for highly anxious patients.