Research paperRisk of mood disorders in patients with colorectal cancer

- Patients with CRC had a significantly higher risk of developing mood disorders.
- This phenomenon was also observed for depression, bipolar disease and anxiety.
- A follow-up time >1 year was more likely to have significantly increased risks.
- Some treatments tended to have a lower risk of anxiety compared to the counterparts.

BackgroundTo assess the risk of mood disorders among patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), a population-based cohort study was performed using the Taiwanese National Health Insurance Research Database.MethodsThe study cohort included 27242 patients diagnosed with CRC between January 1, 2000 and December 31, 2010. Four insurants from the general population without CRC were frequency matched to each case by age, sex, and index year/month to create the control group. Cox's proportional hazard regression model with hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) was conducted to estimate the impact of CRC on the risk of mood disorders.ResultsPatients with CRC exhibited a significantly higher risk of developing mood disorders (adjusted HR=3.05, 95% CI =2.89-3.20) compared with the control group. This phenomenon was also observed for each type of mood disorder (depression, bipolar disease and anxiety), as well as across different subgroups by patient characteristics. However, a follow-up time longer than 1 year was more likely to have significantly increased risks, and we unexpectedly found that some treatments in CRC patients tended to have a decreased risk of anxiety compared to their counterparts.ConclusionThe findings of this population-based cohort study suggest that patients with CRC are at a higher risk of mood disorders, especially when follow-up time is longer than 1 year, but various treatments may inversely affect this association.