Efficacy of cognitive therapy for depression among women with metastatic cancer: a single-case experimental study.

ABSTRACT

Although depression is frequent among patients with advanced cancer, very few studies have been conducted on its treatment. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of cognitive therapy for depression in women with metastatic cancer, using a multiple baseline experimental design. Six participants were enrolled in the study and were asked to complete daily and weekly mood assessments. Intervention time-series analyses conducted on daily mood data showed statistically significant improvement of depression symptoms, more importantly anhedonia, and associated features (i.e., anxiety, fatigue) for each participant. These improvements were also found to be clinically significant at post-treatment.