Treating Depression Among Low-Income Patients With Cancer

Experimental Arm patients receive: first-line choice of antidepressant medication management,psychotherapy or both; depression education, and maintenance/relapse prevention counseling based on a stepped care depression treatment algorithm, treatment follow-up and feedback to the oncologist, and systems navigation; a psychiatric consultant who prescribes antidepressant medication for individual patients; and a didactic for oncologists on depression management. Cultural adaptations include: patient choice of first line treatment and degree of family participation in their depression care; PST tailored for literacy and patients with cancer; bilingual, bicultural CDCS; Spanish educational materials.