Major depressive disorders in outpatients with cancers at the Nigerian National Hospital

Abstract

Objective Frequently, little attention is paid by clinicians on the psychiatric disorders that may be associated with cancers. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of major depressive disorders in outpatients with cancers at the Radiology Oncology Centre of the National Hospital, Abuja, Nigeria. It also sought to determine the socio‐demographic and clinical factors associated with the disorder. Method A sample of 177 randomly selected outpatients with cancers was interviewed with socio‐demographic questionnaire and the major depressive episode section of the Mini International NeuroPsychiatric Interview at the hospital. Results The mean age (SD) of the participants was 48.9 (13.8) years, with females accounting for 61.6% of them. The prevalence of current major depressive disorder, past depressive episode and recurrent depressive disorder were 25.1%, 24.3% and 7.5%, respectively. The current depressive disorder was found to be significantly associated with the presence of disturbing pain and the stage of the disease. Conclusion The occurrence of depressive disorders in patients with cancers at the hospital was high. Their assessment and treatment should be prioritized to ensure complete management of the patients with cancer conditions.

Prevalence and correlates of major depressive disorders among patients with cancer at Kamuzu Central Hospital in Malawi

“…To our knowledge, this study had reported lower prevalence estimate for major depressive disorder in the sub-Saharan Africa among patients living with cancer when compared with other reports in the region [9,17,[23][24][25][26][27]. However, the estimate was still high considering that depression increases the risk of mortality by 19% among patients living with cancer [13,17].…”

Examining Depression among Breast Cancer Survivors in Nigeria: A Scoping Review

“…The data in table 1 reveals that a total of 7 studies were investigated. 8,[14][15][16][17][18][19] The minimum sample size was 33, 14 while the maximum sample size was 222. 17 Research on the prevalence of depression among breast cancer patients in Nigeria began in 1998.…”

“…17 Most of these studies were conducted in South-west Nigeria, [14][15][16][17][18] while two were carried out in Northcentral Nigeria. 8,19 In terms of research design, five of the selected articles 8,14-16,18 used a descriptive survey research design, one study 17 employed a comparative cross-sectional design, and one study 19 used a qualitative approach. The tools used for data collection in these selected articles were questionnaires and interviews.…”

“…7 The high death rate associated with breast cancer may be due to the complex relationship between depression and breast cancer. 8 Factors such as environmental and cultural influences, poor health-seeking behavior among patients, and the use of herbal treatments have been suggested as contributing to depression among cancer patients. 9 Cancer patients often worry excessively after being diagnosed, mistakenly believing that breast cancer cannot be medically treated and that it inevitably leads to death.…”

“…This belief triggers depressive symptoms among patients. 8 When depressive symptoms occur in cancer patients, the burden on caregivers increases, the patients' quality of life decreases, hospital stays are prolonged, adherence to prescribed medication decreases, and mortality rates increase. 10 Studies have been conducted by researchers in Nigeria and Africa on breast cancer patients.…”