INTERFACES BETWEEN ONCOLOGY, DEPRESSION AND MENTAL HEALTH IN BREAST CANCER

Resumo

Breast cancer remains the most incident neoplasm among women worldwide. In this context, although therapeutic advances have increased survival rates, the diagnosis and treatment impose a significant emotional burden on patien ts, frequently leading to the development of mental disorders, most notably depression. In light of this, the present study aims to conduct a narrative review regarding the association between depression and breast cancer. A structured narrative review was performed following the SANRA guidelines (Scale for the Assessment of Narrative Review Articles), utilizing the PubMed database. The search strategy was conducted using the descriptors: "breast cancer," "depression," "inflammation," "quality of life," and "survival" combined by Boolean operators (AND). Randomized controlled clinical trials, systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and clinical trials published between 2021 and 2026 in English were included. Experimental animal studies, case reports, and articles without full-text availability were excluded. As a result of the initial search, 141 articles were identified, of which 8 were selected for their higher relevance to the topic. The study selection was carried out by reading titles and abstracts, followed by a full -text analysis of the eligible articles. The analysis identified that breast cancer and depression are frequently associated in patients still undergoing oncological treatment and in those in clinical remission. Studies demonstrated that factors s uch as psychological follow -up contribute to treatment, while the practice of physical activity is associated with improved anxiety and quality of life during the remission period. Additionally, clinical trials showed that psychotherapeutic monitoring, suc h as cognitive - behavioral therapy, has proven promising in patients in remission who present anxiety, depression, and fear of recurrence. In this sense, although studies point to an association between depression and worse clinical outcomes in breast cancer, a better quality of life can improve the prognosis of these patients. Therefore, it is essential that interventions are implemented to address these needs.