The present research aimed to investigate the impact of a psychological nursing intervention on psychological distress and quality of life of thyroid cancer patients. A total of 286 participants were randomly divided into two groups: a control group (n = 143) and an intervention group (n = 143). In addition to routine nursing care, patients in the intervention group were given additional psychological nursing interventions. A reduced edition of the Profile of Mood States was used to evaluate mood disturbance, and the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire-Core Questionnaire (version 3.0) was applied to determine the quality of life of patients. The intervention group showed remarkably alleviated depression, anxiety, and mood disturbance when compared to the control group. In addition, global health status, functional status, and symptoms status were significantly improved in the intervention group. In conclusion, our findings suggest that a psychological nursing intervention could reduce psychological distress and enhance the life quality of thyroid cancer patients, which could have clinical value to the treatment of thyroid cancer.