This study will clarify the present state of public health nursing activities and public health nurses’ knowledge of radiation in a prefecture where nuclear power plant have been located. We conducted a questionnaire survey of public health nurses 462 persons, to find the following results.

A comparison of public health nursing knowledge of radiation and the training and education on radiation for nursing activities was made by investigation two groups of public health nurses: those who worked in places for public health center nurses or municipal health nurses center and those who worked in places of inner or outer of UPZ （Urgent Protective action planning Zone）.

We got survey responses from 222 persons and the response rate to the questionnaires was 48.1%. In prefecture（A）, differences in public health nurses’ knowledge and need for education of radiation were recognized. Especially public health nurses worked in the UPZ had many opportunities to receive radiation education and nuclear disaster prevention training, so their need for education and knowledge scores tended to be higher.

While public health nurses feel the need for radiation education in places where a nuclear power plant is located, they also feel the need for radiation education in their daily work. It is therefore necessary for all public health nurses to receive radiation education for their daily and non-daily work activities.

Support for patients with head-and-neck cancer was analyzed qualitatively through a semi-structured interview. The subjects were four patients with head-and-neck cancer who had completed radiotherapy after temporary discontinuation. The results were classified based on the categories by the analysis into ‘radiotherapy’, ‘adverse events’, ‘thoughts during temporary discontinuation of therapy’, ‘support for continuation of therapy’, and ‘after completion of therapy’. Hope for possible treatment and the will to live were the main factors supporting the patients to complete radiotherapy. For example, one patient had previously thought that it was all over if cancer was found in a lymph node, but was told that treatment was still possible. Nurses should provide support to patients by offering hope, even during temporary discontinuation of therapy due to adverse events, while understanding the underlying thoughts of patients about their therapy and life. A strong will of patients to recover and live, the presence and words of their families and of patients receiving similar therapy, the attitudes of nurses, and the words of physicians were all important in supporting patients to complete radiotherapy.