Improving Mental Health Care for People with Cancer

 As many as three out of every four people with cancer experience symptoms of psychological distress or cognitive concerns. These issues can negatively affect cancer patients' overall well-being and health outcomes. Distress screening is recommended for cancer patients in all clinical settings, and is required in American College of Surgeons Commission on Cancer (AcoS)-accredited facilities. Unfortunately, one-third or fewer cancer patients have talked to their doctor about their psychosocial needs and concerns, and fewer receive treatment for distress.





Training simulation

The Provider Education for Mental Health Care of Cancer Survivors Training was created to support health care providers, improve knowledge about cancer patients' mental health care, and promote recommended distress screening. Read the course summary.

During this free, web-based interactive training, providers can engage in role-play conversations with simulated cancer survivors to try different approaches to discussing mental health concerns identified through distress screening, and make appropriate referrals when indicated. This training also allows providers to get personalized feedback and gain the confidence and skills to lead similar conversations in real life. During the training, providers can complete learning tasks related to distress screening, patient-reported stressors, patient concerns, and referral options

This project was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC's Office of State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support) through cooperative agreement number 5NU38OT000225-05 with the National Association of Chronic Disease Directors.

Reverend Dr. James Brewer-Calvert talks to clinical health psychologist Dr. Lynne Padgett about sharing what he was feeling and thinking with his doctors during colon cancer treatment in this video.

Brain stimulation therapies can play an important role in treating mental disorders. These therapies work by activating or inhibiting the brain with electricity. The electricity can be given directly through electrodes implanted in the brain or indirectly through electrodes placed on the scalp. The electricity can also be induced by applying magnetic fields to the head.

This video from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) provides an overview of brain stimulation therapies and how they can be used to treat mental disorders.

This page provides basic information about brain stimulation therapies. It does not cover all forms of therapy or all mental disorders for which a therapy might be used. The information should not be used as a guide for making medical decisions. Research is ongoing to determine the best use of these therapies and if they are effective treatments for other disorders and conditions.

The page is divided into therapies that are authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to treat specific mental disorders, including depression, bipolar disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), versus therapies that are newer and still considered experimental.

The authorized therapies covered on this page are:

  • Electroconvulsive therapy
  • Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation
  • Vagus nerve stimulation

The experimental therapies covered on this page are:

  • Magnetic seizure therapy
  • Deep brain stimulation

Other brain stimulation therapies not discussed here may also hold promise for treating mental disorders. Information about these therapies is updated frequently. See the FDA website  for the latest information, warnings, and guidance on brain stimulation devices and announcements about new ones.

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