Cancer diseases affect approximately 10 million people only in Europe. As a result of the demographic development, their prevalence is expected to double during the next 10 years. Cancer is a leading cause of death. It accounted for eight million deaths worldwide (around 15% of all deaths) in 2010 (38% more than in 1990) Meanwhile the number of survivors continues to grow, not just because of earlier detection and treatment, but because of revolutionary new therapies. About 9 million Americans of all ages are living with a current or past diagnosis of cancer. For many individuals, this changes the landscape from a terminal illness to more of a chronic illness with periods of remission and exacerbation of symptoms. This perspective on neoplasms has broadened the scope of care from treating the disease alone to managing cancer-related symptoms at different stages of the disease trajectory including mental disorders. Cancer-related distress was depicted as a “multifactorial unpleasant emotional experience of a psychological, social, and/or spiritual nature that may interfere with the ability to cope effectively with cancer, its physical symptoms, and its treatment” by the National Comprehensive Cancer Network of the US. Distress is related to a lower quality of life, treatment compliance and efficacy, higher mortality, and a higher risk of suicide. Therefore, clinicians should make efforts to promote patients’ quality of life and decrease medical costs by alleviating patient distress. This epidemiological research is of particular significance for the development and implementation of psychosocial support offers within the health care system. The prevalence of common mental disorders among people with cancer varies widely in the published literature. Recent meta-analytical evidence indicates that the overall prevalence of mental disorders among cancer patients ranges from 9.8% to 38.2% in various cancer settings. In an international review including 94 interview-based studies, the prevalence of depression by DSM or ICD criteria in oncological and hematological settings (70 studies) was 16.3%; the prevalence of dysthymia was 2.7%; the prevalence of adjustment disorder was 19.4%; and the prevalence of anxiety disorders was 10.3%. However, combination diagnoses were prevalent among up to 38.2% of patients. The prevalence of depression in palliative-care settings (24 studies) was 16.5%; the prevalence of adjustment disorder was 15.4%; the prevalence of anxiety disorders was 9.8%; and combination diagnoses were pre valent among up 29.0% of patients. Accordingly, Singer et al. observed prevalence rates up to 32% among cancer patients in acute hospitals.
Submit manuscript via https://www.scholarscentral.org/submissions/epidemiology-open-access.html or email us at submissions@omicsonline.com
Regards
Elsa
Managing Editor
Epidemiology: Open Access