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Physiological Evidence of “Chemo Brain” Identified

TOP - Daily

Patients who receive chemotherapy describe chemo brain as “mental fog” and “loss of coping skills”

According to a study presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America, chemotherapy can induce changes in the brain that may affect concentration and memory. Physiological evidence of chemo brain, a common side effect in patients undergoing chemotherapy for cancer treatment, was detected by researchers using positron emission tomography combined with computed tomography (PET/CT).

“The chemo brain phenomenon is described as ‘mental fog’ and ‘loss of coping skills’ by patients who receive chemotherapy,” said Rachel A. Lagos, DO, diagnostic radiology resident at the West Virginia University School of Medicine and West Virginia University Hospitals in Morgantown, West Virginia. “Because this is such a common patient complaint, healthcare providers have generically referred to its occurrence as ‘chemo brain’ for more than two decades.”

Although it is a common complaint, the cause of chemo brain has not been easy to identify. Previous research using MRI scans has found small differences in brain volume following chemotherapy; however, no conclusive link has been determined.

Therefore, the goal of the study was to identify chemotherapy’s effect on brain function rather than the brain’s appearance. With the use of PET/CT, researchers measured changes in the brain’s metabolism after chemotherapy.

For the study, PET/CT brain imaging results from 128 patients who had undergone chemotherapy for breast cancer were analyzed. Unique software was used by Lagos and colleagues to determine differences in brain metabolism both before and after chemotherapy. Results were compared with patient history, neurologic examinations, and chemotherapy regimens.

Researchers discovered that PET/CT results demonstrated statistically significant decreases in brain metabolism.

Lagos said, “Chemo brain phenomenon is more than a feeling. It is a change in brain function observable on PET/CT brain imaging.”

Regions of the brain affected were those closely associated with symptoms of chemo brain phenomenon. “The study shows that there are specific areas of the brain that use less energy following chemotherapy,” Lagos said. “These brain areas are the ones known to be responsible for planning and prioritizing.”

Lagos and her fellow researchers believe that PET/CT could be used to help facilitate clinical diagnosis and allow for earlier intervention among patients experiencing this often debilitating condition.

Source: RSNA.