What is it about?
Although depression and anxiety commonly co-occur in multiple sclerosis, they are often treated in isolation. In this paper, we examined whether cognitive behavior therapy designed to target both depressive and anxiety symptoms is effective for people living with multiple sclerosis, by reviewing evidence from randomised controlled trials.
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Why is it important?
Cognitive behavior therapy targeting both depression and anxiety--or transdiagnostic cognitive behavior therapy--is associated with reduced costs, patient waiting times, and clinician training requirements. These practical advantages are especially relevant to people with multiple sclerosis, who often report having limited time, money, and physical and cognitive ability to manage their own mental health care, as well as healthcare providers, who often report not having the resources or training to monitor and treat depression and anxiety in people with multiple sclerosis. Our review shows promising results in favor of transdiagnostic cognitive behavior therapy, but conclusions remain tentative. As the evidence base is still in its infancy, more research will be needed to verify our findings.
Perspectives
The process of writing this review has given me the opportunity to engage with many colleagues who are also passionate about improving access to and quality of mental health care for people living with multiple sclerosis. I am grateful for their contribution and support of this work. I hope this article helps bring to light the incredible work that has been done by many in this field, but also the gaps that remain in the way we identify and treat psychological comorbidities of multiple sclerosis--especially anxiety.
Linh Dang
University of Melbourne
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Transdiagnostic cognitive behavioral therapy for depression and anxiety in multiple sclerosis: A meta-analytic review., Clinical Psychology Science and Practice, August 2026, American Psychological Association (APA),
DOI: 10.1037/cps0000391.
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