Observational analysis found increased white matter hyperintensities in breast cancer patients post-chemotherapy, suggesting potential cognitive risks.
Motivation: Understanding the neuroimaging changes after chemotherapy is essential for elucidating the mechanism behind chemotherapy-related cognitive impairment. Goal(s): To compare the dynamic changes in white matter hyperintensities (WMH) volume across different brain regions in breast cancer patients undergoing neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NAC). Approach: Brain MRI and neuropsychological tests were conducted at three time points during NAC. Healthy controls underwent the same assessments at corresponding time points. Results: Following NAC, the volume of WMH in centain brain regions of breast cancer patients increased significantly, and mainly occurred after the first cycle of NAC and then remained stable until the completion of NAC. Impact: Our preliminary findings indicate that the effects of chemotherapy on WMH volume are mainly acute or subacute, highlighting the importance of early intervention for the prevention of chemotherapy-related cognitive impairment.
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Hu et al. (2025) studied this question.
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