Year: 2011
Type: book-chapter
Abstract: Melanoma in the Clinic -Diagnosis, Management and Complications of Malignancy 288 shortly after beginning IFN therapy or later as a consequence of sustained treatment.3 Neurologic and neuropsychiatric complications include headaches, visual changes, paresthesias, hyperkinesia, decreased attention and concentration, and impairments in visual scanning, verbal memory, executive function, and motor control.Psychiatric complications include depression, anxiety, mania, and suicidal ideation.More rarely, IFN may induce mixed affective states in patients with melanoma with both depressive and manic symptoms.Patients are at particular risk of developing hypomania or mania when IFN doses are changed or when IFN-induced depression is treated with antidepressants without concomitant mood stabilisers.The risk of mood fluctuation continues after treatment with IFN stops.Greenburg et al reported that 40% of interferon-treated melanoma patients reported depressed mood and 8% reported severe depression with functional impairment or suicidal ideation.4 Adverse events following IFN treatment also include attempted and completed suicides.3 Neuropsychiatric effects of IFN resulting in depression and/or anxiety may be mistaken by clinicians as representing the flu-like syndrome of IFN treatment, or as a reaction to the trauma of the cancer diagnosis.It is important that clinicians are able to recognise the treatment related psychiatric side effects of IFN and other interventions used to treat melanoma. How to referenceIn order to correctly reference this scholarly work, feel free to copy and paste the following: Steve Kisely, David Lawrence, Gill Kelly,
Source: InTech eBooks
DOI: 10.5772/19020
Authors: Steve Kisely, David Lawrence, Gill Kelly, Joanne Pais, Elizabeth Crowe
Language: English
Subfield: Oncology
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W2123601846