Prevalence and Associated Factors of Depression Symptoms in Women Newly Diagnosed with Breast Cancer in Kazakhstan.

INTRODUCTION

Diagnosis of breast cancer is associated with the presence of psychological disorders including depression. There is a lack of study examining the prevalence of depression among newly diagnosed breast cancer patients in Kazakhstan.

OBJECTIVE

This study aims to assess the prevalence and associated sociodemographic and clinical factors of depression symptoms in women newly diagnosed with breast cancer.

METHODS

162 newly diagnosed breast cancer patients at the oncology center in Almaty were recruited for this study. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire on sociodemographic and clinical information and the Beck Depression Inventory-II scale.

RESULTS

The mean age of the patients was 54.41 years (SD=8.1). 95% of participants had unilateral breast cancer, and 79% of participants had stage I or stage II breast cancer. 73% of patients said that they do not have reliable social support. 46% of patients had symptoms of moderate depression, and 31% of patients had symptoms of severe depression. According to the multivariate analysis, factors associated with depression symptoms were: social status, household income level, reliability of social support, and stage of breast cancer.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of depression symptoms is very high among newly diagnosed breast cancer patients. Unemployed or retired patients, with a lower household income, and no reliable social support diagnosed with an advanced stage of breast cancer are especially at high risk for developing depression.