Recent studies suggest that learning and using a second language (L2) can affect brain structure, including the structure of white matter (WM) tracts. This observation comes from research looking at early and older bilingual individuals who have been using both their first and second languages on an everyday basis for many years. This study investigated whether young, highly immersed late bilinguals would also show structural effects in the WM that can be attributed to everyday L2 use, irrespective of critical periods or the length of L2 learning. Our Tract-Based Spatial Statistics analysis revealed higher fractional anisotropy values for bilinguals vs. monolinguals in several WM tracts that have been linked to language processing and in a pattern closely resembling the results reported for older and early bilinguals. We propose that learning and actively using an L2 after childhood can have rapid dynamic effects on WM structure, which in turn may assist in preserving WM integrity in older age.bilingualism | immersion | white matter | second language acquisition | TBSS
Bilingualism has been shown to affect the structure of the brain, including cortical regions related to language. Less is known about subcortical structures, such as the basal ganglia, which underlie speech monitoring and language selection, processes that are crucial for bilinguals, as well as other linguistic functions, such as grammatical and phonological acquisition and processing. Simultaneous bilinguals have demonstrated significant reshaping of the basal ganglia and the thalamus compared to monolinguals. However, it is not clear whether these effects are due to learning of the second language (L2) at a very young age or simply due to continuous usage of two languages. Here, we show that bilingualism-induced subcortical effects are directly related to the amount of continuous L2 usage, or L2 immersion. We found significant subcortical reshaping in non-simultaneous (or sequential) bilinguals with extensive immersion in a bilingual environment, closely mirroring the recent findings in simultaneous bilinguals. Importantly, some of these effects were positively correlated to the amount of L2 immersion. Conversely, sequential bilinguals with comparable proficiency and age of acquisition (AoA) but limited immersion did not show similar effects. Our results provide structural evidence to suggestions that L2 acquisition continuously occurs in an immersive environment, and is expressed as dynamic reshaping of the core of the brain. These findings propose that second language learning in the brain is a dynamic procedure which depends on active and continuous L2 usage.
ObjectivesOver two million people in the UK are living with and beyond cancer. A third report diminished quality of life.DesignA review of published systematic reviews to identify effective non-pharmacological interventions to improve the quality of life of cancer survivors.Data sourcesDatabases searched until May 2017 included PubMed, Cochrane Central, EMBASE, MEDLINE, Web of Science, the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and PsycINFO.Study selectionPublished systematic reviews of randomised trials of non-pharmacological interventions for people living with and beyond cancer were included; included reviews targeted patients aged over 18. All participants had already received a cancer diagnosis. Interventions located in any healthcare setting, home or online were included. Reviews of alternative therapies or those non-English reports were excluded. Two researchers independently assessed titles, abstracts and the full text of papers, and independently extracted the data.OutcomesThe primary outcome of interest was any measure of global (overall) quality of life.Analytical methodsQuality assessment assessing methdological quality of systematic reviews (AMSTAR) and narrative synthesis, evaluating effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions and their components.ResultsOf 14 430 unique titles, 21 were included in the review of reviews. There was little overlap in the primary papers across these reviews. Thirteen reviews covered mixed tumour groups, seven focused on breast cancer and one focused on prostate cancer. Face-to-face interventions were often combined with online, telephone and paper-based reading materials. Interventions included physical, psychological or behavioural, multidimensional rehabilitation and online approaches. Yoga specifically, physical exercise more generally, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) programmes showed benefit in terms of quality of life.ConclusionsExercise-based interventions were effective in the short (less than 3–8 months) and long term. CBT and MBSR also showed benefits, especially in the short term. The evidence for multidisciplinary, online and educational interventions was equivocal.
This is the first examination of post-traumatic stress in survivors of HNC and shows that high levels of cancer-related PTSS exist for many years after diagnosis in both patients and their partners.
Objective: Cancer has been reported to trigger symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in a substantial proportion of individuals. Despite the significant burden associated with these symptoms, there are as yet no therapeutic guidelines. This systematic review aims to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions for cancerrelated post-traumatic stress in order to provide an evidence base for developing appropriate clinical practice. Methods: Databases searched until April 2018 included Psych INFO, EMBASE, Medline, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL). No restrictions to study design were applied. Participants aged 18 years or older who received their cancer diagnosis in adulthood and had symptoms of cancer-related PTSD were included. Because of significant clinical heterogeneity, a meta-analysis was not performed. Results: Of 508 unique titles, eight studies met study inclusion criteria: five randomised controlled trials (RCTs), one before-and-after study, one case series, and one case study. Interventions were predominately psychological and were administered to patients with a range of cancer types. Eye movement desensitisation and reprocessing and cognitive behavioural therapy-based interventions were associated with reduced symptomatology; however, overall the methodological quality of studies had limitations. Conclusions: At present, there is only weak evidence available for the effectiveness of psychological interventions in reducing symptoms of cancer-related PTSD. The majority of interventions were administered to all cancer patients regardless of whether they showed pretreatment levels of post-traumatic stress. Future studies would be better targeted towards patients with a diagnosis of cancer and who have significant levels of cancer-related post-traumatic symptoms. Higher quality trials are also needed before treatment recommendations can be made.
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