Depression und subjektive kognitive Beeinträchtigung bei Langzeit-Brustkrebsüberlebenden

Notwithstanding an acceptable quality of life, breast cancer survivors can still experience physical and psychological symptoms 5 or more years after diagnosis. Studies assessing these symptoms in cancer survivors should include general population controls of the same age to differentiate the effects of cancer and age on these symptoms. A population-based study with over 3,000 breast cancer survivors and over 1,000 women without cancer showed a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms and cognitive problems in breast cancer survivors between 30 and 79 years of age compared to the control group. In the age group 80 to 89 years, breast cancer survivors did not show more depression compared to women without cancer. Depression was particularly common in cancer survivors with a disease recurrence. Time since diagnosis hardly played any role in both depression and cognitive functioning in cancer survivors. Our results show that depression and cognitive complaints are significant in breast cancer survivors, years after diagnosis. It is therefore important to identify potential depressive or cognitive disorders soon after diagnosis in order to prevent complaints from becoming chronic. Overall, the results show that adequate follow-up care should not only include physical but also psychological aspects, and should use appropriate screening instruments in order to meet breast cancer survivors’ needs.