Healio (2/28) reports that research indicated “mood and adjustment disorders, such as anxiety and depression, predicted the number of outpatient visits, hospital admissions and days spent in the hospital for patients with breast or prostate cancer.” Additionally, “between 2007 and 2014, the incidence of mood and adjustment disorders increased from 21% to 28% among women with breast cancer and from 9% to 13% among men with prostate cancer.” The findings were scheduled to be presented at the Quality Care Symposium.

Related Links:

— “Anxiety, depression predict increased medical use in patients with breast, prostate cancer,” Healio, February 28, 2017.

In a special report, STAT (2/6, Thielking) explains that colleges and universities across the US “are failing to keep up with a troubling spike in demand for mental health care – leaving students stuck on waiting lists for weeks, unable to get help.” After surveying “dozens of universities about their mental health services,” STAT discovered that “students often have to wait weeks just for an initial intake exam to review their symptoms.” Even “longer still” is the waiting time “to see a psychiatrist who can prescribe or adjust medication – often a part-time employee.”

Related Links:

— “,” MEGAN THIELKING, STAT, February 6, 2017.

The Winston-Salem (NC) Journal (1/29, Howse) reports that next month, the national Stepping Up Process to End Recidivism (SUPER) “initiative to reduce the number of people with mental illness in jails will start accepting participants.” The initiative’s goal is “to raise awareness of factors that contribute to the over-representation of people with mental illnesses in jails, and to develop practices and strategies to reduce the numbers.” Leading the “national initiative” are “the National Association of Counties, the Council of State Governments Justice Center and the American Psychiatric Association Foundation.”

Related Links:

— “Forsyth County launching initiative to reduce number of people jailed who have mental illness,”Jordan Howse Winston, The Winston-Salem Journal, January 30, 2017.

Medscape (1/26, Melville) reports that “increasing evidence shows a bidirectional” association “between psychological stress and physical disease, as underscored in” research “linking posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) to cancer as well as acute cardiovascular disease and stroke, according to two articles published in” The Lancet. In one study, investigators “outline the evidence supporting the role of PTSD as a potentially causative factor as well as a consequential factor in cardiovascular disease.” In the other “article, a qualitative review of PTSD and cancer, the authors report that studies involving various cancer types, including lung and breast cancer, show rates of traumatization and stress symptoms in approximately 37% to 60% of cancer survivors.”

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

Medscape (1/26, Anderson) reports, “Getting a divorce increases the risk of developing an alcohol use disorder (AUD) by more than sevenfold for women and almost sixfold for men,” researchers found after identifying and then following “942,366 individuals born in Sweden between 1960 and 1990 who were married and residing with their spouse in or after 1990 and who had no AUD prior to marriage.” The findings were published online Jan. 20 in the American Journal of Psychiatry, a publication of the American Psychiatric Association.

Related Links:

— Medscape (requires login and subscription)

MedPage Today (1/25, Duggal) reports that data from “a large federal survey” indicates that “office visits during 2012-2013 by children with a primary diagnosis of ADHD reached an annual average of 6.1 million, equating to a rate of 105 per 1,000 children ages 4 to 17.” The article notes that “the majority of these visits were not with a psychiatrist,” which may be attributable to an “unequal distribution of specialists around the country,” particularly in rural areas.

Related Links:

— “6 Million Visits for ADHD by U.S. Kids Each Year,”Neel A. Duggal, MedPage Today, January 25, 2017.

The New York Times (1/25, Reynolds, Subscription Publication) reports in “Well” that “when people get up and move, even a little, they tend to be happier than when they are still,” researchers found in a large study after using “cellphone data to track activities and moods.” Overall, investigators found that “people who move are more content than people who sit.” The Times also points out, “Epidemiological studies have found…that people who exercise or otherwise are active typically are less prone to depression and anxiety than sedentary people.” The findings were published online Jan. 4 in PLOS One.

Related Links:

— “Get Up and Move. It May Make You Happier,”Gretchen Reynolds, The New York Times, January 25, 2017.

HealthDay (1/25, Preidt) reports that research suggests “anxiety and depression may increase the risk of death from certain cancers,” including “colon, esophageal, pancreatic and prostate cancers and leukemia.” Investigators came to this conclusion after looking at data from 16 “studies that included more than 163,000 people.” The findings were published in the BMJ.

Related Links:

— “Mental Health May Affect Chances Against Cancer,” Robert Preidt, HealthDay, January 25, 2017.

USA Today (1/24) columnist Steven Petrow writes that mental health mobile apps are a great idea that could potentially help many people with mental health problems get the treatment they need, but that many of the apps still have problems. Petrow shares his experience with one such app, Talkspace, and explains why he is concerned about the therapists on the app, and also whether the app does enough to protect patients’ privacy. Petrow mentions that the American Psychiatric Association has developed a model for evaluating such apps.

Related Links:

— “Text-based therapy is not ready for prime time,”Steven Petrow, USA Today, January 24, 2017.

In a greater than 1,200-word piece, Scientific American (1/24) reports, “As many as 46 states have now enacted measures for” assisted outpatient treatment (AOT), “and these policies have garnered support from organizations including the American Psychiatric Association and the International Association of Chiefs of Police.” Nevertheless, “these laws are often underutilized,” partly due to a lack of “trained personnel and underfunding, but fierce opposition to AOT plays a part.” Some critics of AOT contend that the treatment “infringes on patients’ rights and harkens [sic] back to the days of asylums.”

Related Links:

— “How Community Mental Health Care Can Make a Major Difference,”Nathaniel P. Morris, Scientific American, January 24, 2017.