Prevalence and severity of anxiety and depression in Chinese patients with breast cancer: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

ContextAnxiety/depression in breast cancer (BC) is common around the world, and Chinese BC patients should not be ignored. The prevalence of anxiety and depression among BC patients are various in different regions of China, but no clear summarization has been made.PurposeThis meta-analysis aimed to evaluate the prevalence and severity of anxiety and depression among breast cancer (BC) patients in China.MethodsA literature search on PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, CINAHL, Scopus, PsycINFO, Cochrane database library, CNKI, Wanfang, and SinoMed was conducted up to 29 December 2021. The effect size (ES) or standard mean difference (SMD) and the corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for the prevalence and severity of anxiety/depression were calculated using the STATA 12.0 software.ResultsA total of 63 identified studies were included, containing a total of 53,513 Chinese women confirmed breast cancer. The results showed a high pooled prevalence of anxiety (38%, 95% CI, 27–50%, I2 = 99.4%, p < 0.001) and depression (38%, 95% CI, 33–44%, I2 = 99.2%, p < 0.001) among Chinese BC patients. Moreover, both anxiety (SMD = 0.30, 95% CI, 0.08–0.53, I2 = 91.6%, p < 0.001) and depression (SMD = 0.25, 95% CI, −0.05–0.55, I2 = 95.3%, p < 0.001) in BC patients were more serious than those in healthy controls, but not significantly different from patients with other diseases. Specifically, among the six regions included, the prevalence of anxiety and depression were both the highest in Northeast China, obviously superior than the second-highest region.ConclusionThe study showed high levels of anxiety and depression among BC patients in China, especially those in the northeast. Clinicians and researchers should pay attention to the psychological problems of patients with breast cancer and regard it as one of the important prognostic outcomes of patients.Systematic review registrationhttps://www.crd.york.ac.uk/prospero/index.php, PROSPERO: CRD42020151752.

Anxiety and depression among cancer patients in Ethiopia: a systematic review and meta-analysis

“…The estimate is in line with a recent meta-analysis by Hashemi et.al, 41.9% ( 40 ). This finding is also congruent with recent meta-analysis conducted in Iran 40.9% ( 41 ), and China 38% ( 42 ). However, our estimate was quite high when compared to a meta-analysis of studies from developed settings, 15.09% ( 43 ).…”

“…The pooled estimate of depression among cancer patients in Ethiopia was 42.96% (95% CI: 34.98, 50.93). Our depression estimate was also in line with other meta-analyses from China 38% ( 42 ), and Iran 50.1% ( 41 ). Nevertheless, the depression prevalence estimate in this study was higher than in a previous meta-analysis conducted in Low- and Lower-Middle–Income Countries 21% ( 39 ).…”