Are cancer patients with high depressive symptom levels able to manage these symptoms without professional care? The role of coping and social support.

Objective: Around 25% of cancer patients experiences depressive symptoms. However, the majority does not receive formal psychological care because patients often prefer managing symptoms alone or with informal social support. Previous research has shown that adaptive coping and social support can indeed be effective in managing relatively mild depressive symptoms.

Understanding care needs of cancer patients with depressive symptoms: The importance of patients' recognition of depressive symptoms.

Objective: The majority of cancer patients with depressive symptoms does not perceive a need for psychological care. Reasons for this are still unclear. We examined the mediating role of cancer patients' perceptions of depressive symptoms in the relationship between depressive symptoms and perceived need for psychological care.