Scientific evidence of the relation between breast cancer and depression: systematic review

Breast cancer is the most frequent malignancy in women around the world. Its diagnosis and treatment may be accompanied by depressive symptoms. The frequency of depression in women with breast cancer may vary, ranging from < 10% to > 70%, depending on the questionnaire, type of population studied and geographic area. Depression is associated with genetic and environmental factors; the imbalance between the central nervous, endocrine and immune systems; the patient’s age at diagnosis of cancer; metastasis; chemotherapy, and physical rehabilitation. Depression treatment is based on different types of approaches, such as hypnosis, meditation, music therapy and stress management. In Mexico, there are few studies about this topic. The objective of this work is to make a critical review on the scientific evidence of the relation between depression and breast cancer.