Abstract

Background Cancer is associated with significant psychological distress. In Nigeria, however, the impact of socio-demographic factors has been less researched.
Aim To determine the prevalence, the severity and the socio-demographic correlates of depression among cancer patients.
Method We recorded the sociodemographic variables of 68 breast cancer, 59 cervical cancer, 40 colonic/
rectal cancer and 43 prostate cancer patients consecutively admitted to the radiotherapy, surgical and gynaecology wards of the University College Hospital, Ibadan between May and November 2006 and administered the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID) and Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS) to them.
Results Sixty-two (29.5%) patients were depressed with 48 (77.4%) of those depressed having moderate depression. About 86% of the subjects had good psychosocial/financial support mostly from relatives. Subjects who rated the support they got from relatives/friends as poor were significantly more likely to be depressed. The other sociodemographic variables considered were not significantly associated with depression in this study. Conclusion Depression is common
among cancer patients. Most patients enjoyed good psychosocial support and this appears to be an important factor in preventing depression among cancer patients.