This paper focuses upon an exploration into the world of the cancer nurse regarding stress and persons with cancer. It is proposed that the cancer nurse's world often is not emphasized or even acknowledged within clinical practice and, for the most part, remains ignored. It is argued that the cancer nurse's world is rich with meaning, and the knowledge, skills and values within this domain need to come to the fore. A phenomenological approach was adopted for the study, because of the inherent emphasis upon meaning and understanding within the cancer nurse's everyday practice. Methodological triangulation involved qualitative interviews with nursing staff on an acute oncology unit, observation of the nursing admission assessments of cancer patients and use of archival sources (nursing kardexes). Content analysis of the interview findings revealed that the common‐sense understandings of the cancer nurse were present in relation to stress and the person with cancer. Although these construals have not been adequately studied, the framework of common‐sense knowledge involves the informal views and the wealth of knowledge individuals have. Common‐sense construals are linked to the nurses' experience, both past and present, and derived from both professional practice and educational experiences. In practice, however, the nurses often failed to rely on this knowledge, apparently because of the mainstream influence of the medical model. The study led to the recommendation reported on in this paper that nurses must bring their common‐sense knowledge and values to the fore in order to provide holistic care of persons with