Polymorphisms in Catecholaminergic and Serotonergic Genes Are Associated with Self-Reported Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Breast Cancer

Background Neurotransmitters such as catecholamines and serotonin are involved in various aspects of cognitive function. Study extends previous work by evaluating the associations between cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for fifteen candidate genes in patients classified in the High versus the Low-moderate attentional function classes. Methods In this exploratory, candidate gene association study, self-reported attentional function was evaluated in 397 patients with breast cancer using the Attentional Function Index before surgery and for six months after surgery. Using growth mixture modeling, three attentional function latent classes were identified: High (41.6%), Moderate (25.4%), and Low-moderate (33.0%). An extreme phenotype approach was used for this analysis. One hundred and eighty-nine SNPs among fifteen genes were included in the candidate gene analyses. Results Compared to the High class, patients in the Low-moderate class were younger, more likely to have a lower household income, had a higher body mass index, lower functional status, higher comorbidity burden , and were more likely to have received neoadjuvant treatment. In the multivariable models, that included self-reported and genomic estimates of race/ethnicity, age, Karnofsky Performance Status score, and Self-administered Comorbidity Questionnaire score, five SNPs for five different genes remained significant (i.e., ADRA1D rs2326478, ADRB2 rs1042718, SLC6A2 rs47958, HTR3A rs10160548, SLC6A4 rs8076005). Conclusion Findings provide preliminary evidence of associations between self-reported CRCI profiles in patients with breast cancer and polymorphisms for catecholaminergic and serotonergic genes.