On predicting the response to antidepressant treatment

摘要

A signpost should not be mistaken for the destination. Yet, researchers yearn for simple and reliable indicators of the likelihood of responding to antidepressant treatment, believing these would enable clinicians to 'personalise' medicine and thereby enhance its efficacy, improve its acceptability and reduce its cost. It has been argued that identification of robust 'surrogate markers' could not only help 'stratify' medicine but also inform discussions about the nature of response and symptom remission, refine targets for innovative treatments and potentially lead to fewer late-stage failures in drag development (Dawson etal.,2011).