Study finds that cancer patients are 20 percent more likely than others to commit suicide
Patients diagnosed with cancer are at a higher risk of suicide, according to a new study published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry.
The population based study of 4 722 099 adult patients with cancer in England concluded that these patients ha a 20% increased risk of suicide compared with the general population. Patients with mesothelioma, pancreatic, esophageal, and lung cancer had the highest risk.
The authors wrote: “Despite low absolute numbers, the elevated risk of suicide in patients with certain cancers is a concern, representing potentially preventable deaths. The increased risk in the first 6 months after diagnosis may indicate an unmet need for psychological support. The findings of this study suggest a need for improved psychological support for all patients with cancer, and attention to modifiable risk factors, such as pain, particularly in specific cancer groups.”
In an eerie rerun of the suicide of the cancer stricken Sheriff in this year’s Oscar nominated Hollywood movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, in May this year, dashing Mumbai cop Himanshu Roy who had been diagnosed with cancer some time back, shot himself to death in his residence
The study was carried our by researchers from several institutions including the West Suffolk National Health Service Foundation, University College London, St Pancras Hospital, and St George’s University Hospitals.
It is a fact now well recognised in medicine and in society that a diagnosis of cancer carries a substantial risk of psychological distress. In an eerie rerun of the suicide of the cancer stricken Sheriff in this year’s Oscar nominated Hollywood movie Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri, in May this year, dashing Mumbai cop Himanshu Roy who had been diagnosed with cancer some time back, shot himself to death in his residence.
Patients may fear death, pain, adverse effects of treatment, such as disfigurement or loss of function, or alterations in their family and community roles. This distress may have a role in the development of suicide ideation: previous evidence from systematic reviews has shown an increased risk of suicide among patients with cancer.
