Cancer and mental health--a clinical and research unmet need

Poor mental health is the largest single source of disability in the UK, and co-morbid health problems, particularly with cancer, raise total health care costs significantly.

This study examined what research is being conducted into the intersection between cancer and mental health. Research papers captured by the intersection of sub-field filters-'mental disorder' and 'cancer'-were studied from the Web of Science over a 10-year period (2002-2011).

There were 1463 papers dealing with the dual presence of cancer and mental disorder. They amounted to 0.26% of cancer research and 0.51% of mental health research over the 10-year period, indicating that their intersection receives little research attention. Eighty per cent of papers were concerned with the effects of cancer on mental health rather than the reverse; a few (5%) looked at the post-traumatic stress suffered by carers of cancer patients. Of cancer types, breast dominated (21%), followed by prostate (5%), lung (3%), oral (2%) and colorectal (2%) cancer. The area of mental health most studied in cancer was unipolar depression.

The paucity of research that exists at the intersection of cancer and mental health requires attention from policymakers and funders in order to address an important trans-disciplinary gap in health care research.