Investigation shows white matter integrity declines in older breast cancer survivors treated with chemotherapy, suggesting links to cognitive impairment.
Key Points
This research aims to explore the integrity of brain white matter in older breast cancer survivors who underwent chemotherapy and to identify associations with cognitive impairment.
Enrolled women aged 65 years and older into three groups: C+, C−, and healthy controls (HC)
Conducted brain MRI with diffusion tensor imaging and cognitive assessments at two different time points
Used fractional anisotropy-based tractography to analyze 80 major brain fiber bundles.
Both C+ and C− groups showed significant white matter integrity reductions over two years
Specific fiber tracts exhibited notable FA reductions, including the left inferior fronto-occipital and inferior longitudinal fasciculus
No significant changes were observed in the HC group, indicating preserved integrity over time
A positive correlation was found between changes in the right inferior fronto-occipital fasciculus and cognitive scores in the C+ group.