Task-based neuroimaging studies face the challenge of developing tasks capable of equivalently probing reading networks across different age groups. Resting-state fMRI, which requires no specific task, circumvents these difficulties. Here, in 25 children (8 -14 years) and 25 adults (21-46 years), we examined the extent to which individual differences in reading competence can be related to resting-state functional connectivity (RSFC) of regions implicated in reading. In both age groups, reading standard scores correlated positively with RSFC between the left precentral gyrus and other motor regions, and between Broca's and Wernicke's areas. This suggests that, regardless of age group, stronger coupling among motor regions, as well as between language/speech regions, subserves better reading, presumably reflecting automatized articulation. We also observed divergent RSFC-behavior relationships in children and adults, particularly those anchored in the left fusiform gyrus (FFG) (the visual word form area). In adults, but not children, better reading performance was associated with stronger positive correlations between FFG and phonology-related regions (Broca's area and the left inferior parietal lobule), and with stronger negative relationships between FFG and regions of the "task-negative" default network. These results suggest that both positive RSFC (functional coupling) between reading regions and negative RSFC (functional segregation) between a reading region and default network regions are important for automatized reading, characteristic of adult readers. Together, our taskindependent RSFC findings highlight the importance of appreciating developmental changes in the neural correlates of reading competence, and suggest that RSFC may serve to facilitate the identification of reading disorders in different age groups.

This observational, cross-sectional study investigates cortical signatures of developmental dyslexia, particularly from the perspective of behavioral remediation. We employed resting-state fMRI, and compared intrinsic functional connectivity (iFC) patterns of known reading regions (seeds) among three dyslexia groups characterized by (a) no remediation (current reading and spelling deficits), (b) partial remediation (only reading deficit remediated), and (c) full remediation (both reading and spelling deficits remediated), and a group of age- and IQ-matched typically developing children (TDC) (total N = 44, age range = 7–15 years). We observed significant group differences in iFC of two seeds located in the left posterior reading network – left intraparietal sulcus (L.IPS) and left fusiform gyrus (L.FFG). Specifically, iFC between L.IPS and left middle frontal gyrus was significantly weaker in all dyslexia groups, irrespective of remediation status/literacy competence, suggesting that persistent dysfunction in the fronto-parietal attention network characterizes dyslexia. Additionally, relative to both TDC and the no remediation group, the remediation groups exhibited stronger iFC between L.FFG and right middle occipital gyrus (R.MOG). The full remediation group also exhibited stronger negative iFC between the same L.FFG seed and right medial prefrontal cortex (R.MPFC), a core region of the default network These results suggest that behavioral remediation may be associated with compensatory changes anchored in L.FFG, which reflect atypically stronger coupling between posterior visual regions (L.FFG-R.MOG) and greater functional segregation between task-positive and task-negative regions (L.FFG-R.MPFC). These findings were bolstered by significant relationships between the strength of the identified functional connections and literacy scores. We conclude that examining iFC can reveal cortical signatures of dyslexia with particular promise for monitoring neural changes associated with behavioral remediation.

BACKGROUND Breast cancer survivors experience long-term physical and psychological sequelae following primary treatment that negatively influence quality of life (QOL) and increase depressive symptoms. Group-based cognitive-behavioral stress management (CBSM) delivered post-surgery for early stage breast cancer was previously associated with better QOL over a 12-month follow-up, as well as with fewer depressive symptoms up to five years post-study enrollment. This 8–15 year (11-year median) follow-up of a previously conducted trial (#NCT01422551) evaluated whether women in this cohort receiving CBSM had fewer depressive symptoms and better QOL than controls at the 8–15 years follow-up. METHODS Women with stage 0-IIIb breast cancer were initially recruited 2–10 weeks post-surgery and randomized to a 10-week CBSM intervention or a 1-day psychoeducational control group. One hundred women (51 CBSM, 49 controls) were re-contacted 8–15 years post study enrollment to participate in a follow-up assessment. The Center for Epidemiologic Studies- Depression scale (CES-D) and the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast (FACT-B) were self-administered. Multiple regression was employed to evaluate group differences on the CES-D and FACT-B over and above effects of confounding variables. RESULTS Participants assigned to CBSM reported significantly lower depressive symptoms (d=0.63, 95% CI [0.56,0.70]), and better QOL (d=0.58, 95% CI [0.52,0.65]), above the effects of the covariates. CONCLUSIONS Women who received CBSM post-surgery for early stage breast cancer reported lower depressive symptoms and better QOL than the control group up to 15 years later. Early implementation of cognitive-behavioral interventions may influence long-term psychosocial functioning in breast cancer survivors.

Non-metastatic breast cancer patients often experience psychological distress which may influence disease progression and survival. Cognitive-behavioral stress management (CBSM) improves psychological adaptation and lowers distress during breast cancer treatment and long-term follow-ups. We examined whether breast cancer patients randomized to CBSM had improved survival and recurrence 8–15 years post-enrollment. From 1998 to 2005, women (N = 240) 2–10 weeks post-surgery for non-metastatic Stage 0–IIIb breast cancer were randomized to a 10-week, group-based CBSM intervention (n = 120) or a 1-day psychoeducational seminar control (n = 120). In 2013, 8–15 years post-study enrollment (11-year median), recurrence and survival data were collected. Cox Proportional Hazards Models and Weibull Accelerated Failure Time tests were used to assess group differences in all-cause mortality, breast cancer-specific mortality, and disease-free interval, controlling for biomedical confounders. Relative to the control, the CBSM group was found to have a reduced risk of all-cause mortality (HR = 0.21; 95 % CI [0.05, 0.93]; p = .040). Restricting analyses to women with invasive disease revealed significant effects of CBSM on breast cancer-related mortality (p = .006) and disease-free interval (p = .011). CBSM intervention delivered post-surgery may provide long-term clinical benefit for non-metastatic breast cancer patients in addition to previously established psychological benefits. Results should be interpreted with caution; however, the findings contribute to the limited evidence regarding physical benefits of psychosocial intervention post-surgery for non-metastatic breast cancer. Additional research is necessary to confirm these results and investigate potential explanatory mechanisms, including physiological pathways, health behaviors, and treatment adherence changes.

Objective Women with breast cancer (BCa) report elevated distress post-surgery. Group-based cognitive-behavioral stress management (CBSM) following surgery improves psychological adaptation, though its key mechanisms remain speculative. This randomized controlled dismantling trial compared two interventions featuring elements thought to drive CBSM effects: a 5-week Cognitive-Behavioral Training (CBT) and 5-week Relaxation Training (RT) vs. a 5-week Health Education (HE) control group. Method Women with stage 0-III BCa (N = 183) were randomized to CBT, RT, or HE condition 2–10 weeks post-surgery. Psychosocial measures were collected at baseline (T1) and post-intervention (T2). Repeated-measures ANOVAs tested whether CBT and RT treatments improved primary measures of psychological adaptation and secondary measures of stress management resource perceptions from pre- to post-intervention relative to HE. Results Both CBT and RT groups reported reduced depressive affect. The CBT group reported improved emotional well-being/quality of life and less cancer-specific thought intrusions. The RT group reported improvements on illness-related social disruption. Regarding stress management resources, the CBT group reported increased reliability of social support networks, while the RT group reported increased confidence in relaxation skills. Psychological adaptation and stress management resource constructs were unchanged in the HE control group. Conclusions Non-metastatic breast cancer patients participating in two forms of brief, 5-week group-based stress management intervention after surgery showed improvements in psychological adaptation and stress management resources compared to an attention-matched control group. Findings provide preliminary support suggesting that using brief group-based stress management interventions may promote adaptation among non-metastatic breast cancer patients.

Purpose Cognitive behavioral stress management (CBSM) is an empirically-validated group-based psychosocial intervention. CBSM is related to decreased self-reported indicators of psychological adversity during breast cancer treatment and greater disease-free survival (DFS) vs. a control condition. This study examined relationships between CBSM, DFS, and a potential biobehavioral pathway linking these variables in breast cancer patients through a gene expression composite representing the leukocyte conserved transcriptional response to adversity (CTRA). Design Women with stage 0-IIIb breast cancer completed questionnaires and provided blood samples post-surgery. Participants were randomized to 10-week group-based CBSM or a psychoeducation control group and followed at 6 months, 12 months, and median 11 years. In total, 51 participants provided blood data for longitudinal analyses (CBSM n = 28; Control n = 23). Mixed model analyses examined CBSM effects on 6–12 month changes in CTRA expression (53 indicator genes representing pro-inflammatory, anti-viral and antibody production signaling). Cox regression models assessed the relationship between 6–12 month changes in CTRA expression and 11-year DFS. Results Patients randomized to CBSM showed attenuated 6–12 month change in CTRA gene expression, whereas patients randomized to control showed increased CTRA expression (p = 0.010). Average DFS was 5.92 years (SD = 3.90). Greater 6–12 month CTRA increases predicted shorter 11-year DFS controlling for covariates (p = 0.023). Conclusions CBSM attenuated CTRA gene expression during the initial year of breast cancer treatment. In turn, greater increases in CTRA gene expression predicted shorter long-term DFS. These findings identify a biobehavioral oncology pathway to examine in future work.

Objective Depression and inflammation may independently promote breast cancer (BCa) disease progression and poorer clinical outcomes. Depression has been associated with increased levels of inflammatory markers in medically healthy individuals and cancer patients. However, inconsistencies in study time frames complicate interpretation of results within specific cancer types. This study examined relationships between depressive symptoms and inflammation in women with early stage BCa before beginning adjuvant treatment. Method Women with stage 0–III BCa were recruited approximately 4–8 weeks post-surgery. Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression and blood samples were collected to quantify circulating levels of IL-1β, IL-6, and TNF-α by ELISA. ANCOVAs were used to test for group differences (elevated vs. low depressive symptoms) in levels of cytokines. Multiple regression analyses were used to examine relationships between continuous severity of depressive symptoms and levels of cytokines adjusting for relevant biobehavioral covariates. Results Thirty-six of 89 (40%) patients showed elevated levels of depressive symptoms, and in adjusted models had marginally higher levels of IL-1β (M=14.49, 95% CI [6.11, 32.65] vs. M=4.68, 95% CI [1.96, 9.86]) and significantly higher levels of TNF-α (M=17.07, 95% CI [8.27, 34.32] vs. M=6.94, 95% CI [3.58, 12.80]) than women with low depressive symptoms. Across the spectrum of depressive symptoms, greater magnitude of depressive symptoms was related to greater levels of IL-1β (β=0.06, p=0.006, R2=0.25) and TNF-α (β=0.06, p=0.003, R2=0.27). Conclusions Post-surgery and pre-adjuvant treatment for early stage BCa, depressive symptoms covary with elevated levels of multiple pro-inflammatory cytokines. Findings have implications for psychosocial and biological interventions concurrently focusing on depression and inflammation.

Working memory (WM) is central to the acquisition of knowledge and skills throughout childhood and adolescence. While numerous behavioral and task-based fMRI studies have examined WM development, few have used resting-state fMRI (R-fMRI). Here, we present a systematic R-fMRI examination of age-related differences in the neural indices of verbal WM performance in a cross-sectional pediatric sample (ages: 7–17; n=68), using data-driven approaches. Verbal WM capacity was measured with the digit span task, a commonly used educational and clinical assessment. We found distinct neural indices of digit span forward (DSF) and backward (DSB) performance, reflecting their unique neuropsychological demands. Regardless of age, DSB performance was related to intrinsic properties of brain areas previously implicated in attention and cognitive control, while DSF performance was related to areas less commonly implicated in verbal WM storage (precuneus, lateral visual areas). From a developmental perspective, DSF exhibited more robust age-related differences in brain-behavior relationships than DSB, and implicated a broader range of networks (ventral attention, default, somatomotor, limbic networks) - including a number of regions not commonly associated with verbal WM (angular gyrus, subcallosum). These results highlight the importance of examining the neurodevelopment of verbal WM and of considering regions beyond the “usual suspects”.