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Association of Depressive Syndrome and Early Deaths Among Patients After Stem-Cell Transplantation for Malignant Diseases

From the Health Policy Institute and the Department of Medicine, Hematology and Oncology, Bone Marrow Transplantation Program, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI; and the Department of Adult Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA.

Address reprint requests to Fausto R. Loberiza, Jr, MD, MS, International Bone Marrow Transplant Registry Health Policy Institute, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Rd, Milwaukee, WI 53224; email: faustol{at}mcw.edu

PURPOSE: The association of depression and increased mortality in the general population, and also various medical conditions, is well documented. However, depression is not well studied in the setting of hematopoietic stem-cell transplantation (HSCT). We examined the association between depressive syndrome and survival after HSCT.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 193 patients who received autologous or allogeneic HSCT from Brigham and Women’s Hospital or Dana-Farber Cancer Institute were evaluated prospectively. The self-rated Likert-scaled symptom checklist, the SF-36, and the Spitzer Quality of Life Index Scale were administered. Outcomes evaluated included survival and quality of life.

RESULTS: Sixty-seven patients (35%) satisfied the criteria for depressive syndrome. The 1-year probability of survival for the depressed and nondepressed patients was 85% (95% confidence interval [CI], 74% to 92%) and 94% (95% CI, 89% to 97%), respectively (P = .04). In multivariable modeling, depressed patients have a three-fold greater risk of dying than nondepressed patients (95% CI, 1.07 to 8.30; P = .04) between 6 and 12 months after HSCT after adjusting for other prognostic factors. Global inferiority in quality of life was observed in the depressed cohort when last measured at 24 months after transplantation.

CONCLUSION: Depressive syndrome after HSCT is associated with decreased survival, at least from 6 to 12 months after transplantation. Persistence of this association after controlling for possible confounding factors suggests that depression may be more than simply a marker for concurrent ill health. This study raises an interesting hypothesis as to whether psychological or pharmacologic intervention for depression after HSCT can improve survival and/or quality of life.

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