Metacognitive therapy for anxiety and depression in cardiac rehabilitation: Commentary on the UK National Institute of Health Research funder PATHWAY programme

Anxiety and depression are common amongst cardiac patients undergoing cardiac rehabilitation and are associated with poorer health, poor quality of life and higher economic costs. There is a paucity of effective psychological treatments and their provision in this care pathway. A new treatment that is proving highly effective in mental health settings, named metacognitive therapy (MCT), could offer a way forward. This commentary delineates the problem of psychological distress (defined by anxiety and depression symptoms) in cardiac rehabilitation, highlights the limitations of current treatment and describes the PATHWAY research programme funded by the UK National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) to translate and test the metacognitive therapy in this population.