The effect of interpersonal psychotherapy on depression, emotion regulation, and perceived social support in breast cancer patients at risk of depression: A randomized controlled trial

Abstract

Purpose This study aimed to evaluate the effects of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) on depression, interpersonal emotion regulation skills, and perceived social support among patients diagnosed with breast cancer. Methods A randomized controlled experimental design was used. The study was conducted between February 2024 and April 2025 at University Hospital's Chemotherapy Unit. The sample consisted of 42 patients, randomly assigned to either an experimental group (n = 21) or a control group (n = 21). The experimental group received 12 weeks of individual IPT. Data were collected at three time points (pre-test, post-test, and follow-up) using the Beck Depression Inventory for Primary Care, the Interpersonal Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, correlation analysis, and multiple regression analysis. Results There were no statistically significant differences between the experimental and control groups in terms of sociodemographic and clinical characteristics (p > 0.05). A significant negative correlation was found between depression levels and both interpersonal emotion regulation and perceived social support (p < 0.001). GLM analyses revealed statistically significant effects of group, time, and group∗time interaction for all measures (p < 0.001). In the intervention group, depression levels significantly decreased while emotion regulation skills and perceived social support increased over time. Conclusion IPT was found to be effective in reducing depression levels and improving interpersonal emotion regulation and perceived social support among breast cancer patients. These findings suggest that IPT should be integrated into psycho-oncology care, and future studies should explore its application in diverse populations and cancer types with larger, multi-center, and long-term designs. © 2025 Elsevier Ltd.