The term cancer refers to the presence of malignant tumors. Since the prevalence of cancer is constantly increasing, the number of children who are faced with the diagnosis of this disease in a family member is also increasing. Children who have a parent with cancer can experience a series of stressful periods, starting with the diagnosis of cancer and continuing through treatment until recovery. In research literature little attention has been given to the children of patients suffering from this disease. With this in mind, the aim of this review is to gain a more detailed insight into the psychosocial functioning of children who have a parent with malignant disease. The aim is also to analyze the impact of various factors on children’s adjustment, such as the child’s gender and age, social support, the gender of sick parent, factors related to the nature of the parent’s illness, the parent-child relationship and some family-related factors. For this purpose, a review of previous works on this topic was made. Children’s negative reactions to the parent’s cancer include changes in mood and self-esteem, changes in academic performance, physical symptoms and social and interpersonal changes. Different emotional reactions can occur in these children, such as anger, resentment, shame, guilt, helplessness, a sense of loss of control and a feeling of isolation. When studying the influence of different factors, the inconsistency of the results is noticed. When looking at the age of children, a large number of studies classify adolescents as the most vulnerable group, and when gender is taken into account, adolescent daughters are often cited as the most negatively affected group. The literature emphasizes the importance of social support, especially from peers and friends who also have a parent with cancer. Greater availability of information reduces children’s anxiety. There are no clear and agreed upon conclusions about whether there is and what kind of impact the gender of parent has. The type of cancer does not seem to be related to the functioning and psychosocial adjustment of these children. The role of counselor in working with these children is also emphasized. More research is needed in order to further contribute to the understanding of the psychosocial functioning of these children and consequently to protection of their mental health.