However , mirtazapine showed effectiveness in treating depression , anxiety , sleep disorders , emesis and neuropathic pain .
Across all studies , mirtazapine is safe to use , with drowsiness and dizziness the most common side-effects .
Cancer patients often experience multiple distressing symptoms which are challenging to manage .
It would therefore be helpful to find a treatment that alleviates more than one symptom , to avoid polypharmacy : mirtazapine has been used in several studies for this purpose .
The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of mirtazapine in alleviating one or more frequently encountered cancer-related symptoms .
A pilot study to evaluate symptom-oriented selection of antidepressants in patients with cancer.
BACKGROUND Major depressive disorder ( MDD ) is a common and debilitating illness in patients with cancer . However , the optimal treatment of depression in these patients remains uncertain , with limited evidence to support the use of pharmacologic therapy . We conducted a pilot study to evaluate the feasibility of an antidepressant clinical trial in the oncology population and the process of symptom-oriented selection of antidepressants ( citalopram or mirtazapine ) in patients with cancer and MDD . METHODS This was a single center , two-arm , nonr and omized , open-label , nine-week pilot study of mirtazapine or citalopram in cancer patients with MDD . The primary endpoint was the feasibility to recruit and to retain patients . Secondary outcomes included changes in Patient Health Question naire-9 ( PHQ-9 ) ( depression ) , Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General ( FACT-G ) ( quality of life ) , Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Fatigue ( FACIT-Fatigue ) ( fatigue ) , and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index ( PSQI ) ( sleep ) . We conducted descriptive statistics and responder analyses . RESULTS Of 21 patients , 18 ( 86 % ) successfully completed the study . An average of 2.8 subjects were enrolled per month . Mean scores on the PHQ-9 improved overall by 6.4 points ( 95 % confidence interval [ CI ] 3.6 - 9.2 ) . Additionally , mean FACT-G , FACIT-Fatigue , and PSQI scores improved in both study arms . CONCLUSION Conducting antidepressant clinical trials is challenging in the oncology population . We approached but did not meet our feasibility goals . Depression and quality of life ( QOL ) scores improved with both mirtazapine and citalopram , but evidence -based pharmacologic treatments for depression in cancer patients are needed
However , mirtazapine showed effectiveness in treating depression , anxiety , sleep disorders , emesis and neuropathic pain .
Across all studies , mirtazapine is safe to use , with drowsiness and dizziness the most common side-effects .
Cancer patients often experience multiple distressing symptoms which are challenging to manage .
It would therefore be helpful to find a treatment that alleviates more than one symptom , to avoid polypharmacy : mirtazapine has been used in several studies for this purpose .
The objective of this study was to assess the effectiveness and safety of mirtazapine in alleviating one or more frequently encountered cancer-related symptoms .