Impact of Depression: Need for Improved Treatment
Mood disorders (Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder) are serious conditions that affect 1 in 10 Canadians of all ages, ethnicities and socioeconomic groups. Depression can be debilitating for an individual, and can also strain relationships, compromise work functioning, worsen physical health and sometimes even lead to death. Many treatments exist, such as medication, psychotherapy, and neurostimulation – however, there is currently no way to know which particular treatment is best for a specific person, based on either biological tests, psychological styles, or any other feature of the person affected. As a result, treatments are chosen that have been proven effective using averages over large groups of people. However, for an individual person, the first treatment is the right one only about half of the time. The goal of the CAN-BIND program is to identify clear and objective ways of matching the right treatment to the right patients for various types of depression.
What CAN-BIND Does: Vision
This program is dedicated to reducing the impact of depression and improving treatment by identifying “biomarkers” – biological and clinical characteristics that will help guide treatment selection. This program is a cross-Canada study of people who are receiving standard treatments for depression, and will also receive blood tests, MRI scans, and clinical evaluations. CAN-BIND investigators are looking for the best combination of these tests to provide a profile that successfully identifies the correct treatment for each individual person. This approach integrates molecular, imaging, and clinical information to match the right treatment to the right patient.
For more information: www.canbind.ca