Screening for Mental Health Issues in Breast Cancer Patients
Author Information
Author(s): P. Hopwood, A. Howell, P. Maguire
Primary Institution: Cancer Research Campaign Psychological Medicine Group; Cancer Research Campaign Department of Medical Oncology, Christie Hospital and Holt Radium Institute
Hypothesis
How well do the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and Rotterdam Symptom Checklist identify anxiety and depression in patients with advanced breast cancer?
Conclusion
Both the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale and the Rotterdam Symptom Checklist effectively identify patients with affective disorders in advanced breast cancer.
Supporting Evidence
- 75% of patients were correctly identified as suffering from an affective disorder by both questionnaires.
- 21% of 'normal' patients were misclassified by the Rotterdam Checklist.
- 26% of 'normal' patients were misclassified by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.
Takeaway
Doctors can use two questionnaires to help find out if breast cancer patients are feeling very sad or anxious, which is important for their care.
Methodology
Patients completed the HADS and RSCL questionnaires, followed by a psychiatric interview to validate the results.
Potential Biases
Potential misclassification of patients due to strict diagnostic criteria.
Limitations
The study may have a low estimated prevalence of psychological illness and relied on self-reported data.
Participant Demographics
Patients with advanced breast cancer, free from dementia or cerebral metastases.
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