Study: Depression Prior to Breast Cancer Ups Risk of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Women suffering from mood disorders such as depression or anxiety before being diagnosed with breast cancer are at a higher risk of developing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) than other breast cancer patients, according to researchers at Ohio State University.

PTSD occurs following the experience or witnessing of life-threatening events, including cancer. Patients with PTSD often have recurrent images, flashbacks and dreams about their diagnosis or treatment and suffer from sleep disturbances, irritability, difficulty concentrating and other symptoms.

Researchers found that 75 percent of breast cancer patients with PTSD had previous mood disorders, according to the study presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association.

"PTSD does occur in breast cancer patients, but not at greater rates than other psychiatric problems such as depression," said Deanna Golden-Kreutz, research associate at OSU and co-author of the study.

The findings indicate that physicians should not focus on PTSD when evaluating cancer patients for psychological problems, according to Barbara Andersen, professor of psychology at OSU and co-author of the study.

"It's important to screen cancer patients for all kinds of depression and anxiety symptoms and disorders, particularly asking about the past history of mood disorders," said Andersen.

Researchers screened women for PTSD symptoms 18 months after being diagnosed with breast cancer, which was about six months after their treatment had ended. Selected patients were followed for an additional 18 months. After an initial screening, women were separated into groups with low, moderate and high symptoms of PTSD. Further study was done on 33 women with high levels of symptoms and 39 women with low levels of symptoms, with the two groups being similar in terms of demographics, stage of disease and treatment.

The women were evaluated for history of psychiatric disorders, traumatic events in their lives, and family psychiatric history. They were also tested for mood and anxiety disorders, alcohol and drug use, and overall functioning.

Researchers found no difference between the high and low symptom group in terms of family psychiatric history. However, the women with high levels of symptoms were significantly more likely to have had past psychiatric treatment than the women with low levels of symptoms, have significantly more traumatic events in their lives and were much more likely to have had mood disorders.

"For the vast majority of patients with breast cancer, the diagnosis and treatment of their disease won't trigger PTSD," said Andersen. "Only a small subset of patients seem to be at risk, and they can be best identified by screening for mood disorders. Our results suggest screening for mood disorders will capture three-quarters of the women most at risk for PTSD."

Other sources: Ohio State University