Wiley, Cochrane Library, 2015
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.cd011006.pub2
Wiley, Cochrane Library, 3(2023), 2023
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.cd011006.pub4
Wiley, Cochrane Library, 4(2018), 2018
DOI: 10.1002/14651858.cd011006.pub3
Full text: Unavailable
Major depression and other depressive conditions are common in people with cancer. These conditions are not easily detectable in clinical practice, due to the overlap between medical and psychiatric symptoms, as described by diagnostic manuals such as the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and International Classification of Diseases (ICD). Moreover, it is particularly challenging to distinguish between pathological and normal reactions to such a severe illness. Depressive symptoms, even in subthreshold manifestations, have been shown to have a negative impact in terms of quality of life, compliance with anti-cancer treatment, suicide risk and likely even the mortality rate for the cancer itself. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) on the efficacy and tolerability of antidepressants in this population group are few and often report conflicting results.