This review summarizes the current literature on cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) with a focus on prevalence, mechanisms, and possible interventions for CRCI in those who receive adjuvant chemotherapy for non-central nervous system tumors and is primarily focused on breast cancer. CRCI is characterized as deficits in areas of cognition including memory, attention, concentration, and executive function. Development of CRCI can impair quality of life and impact treatment decisions. CRCI is highly prevalent; these problems can be detected in up to 30% of patients prior to chemotherapy; up to 75% of patients report some form of CRCI during treatment, and CRCI is still present in up to 35% of patients many years following completion of treatment. While the trajectory of CRCI is becoming better understood, the mechanisms underlying the development of CRCI are still obscure; however, host characteristics, immune dysfunction, neural toxicity, and genetics may play key roles in the development and trajectory of CRCI. Intervention research is limited, though strategies to maintain function are being studied with promising preliminary findings. This review highlights key research being conducted in these areas, both in patient populations and in animals, which will ultimately result in better understanding and effective treatments for CRCI.

Clinical Trials.gov , # NCT00924651, http://www.clinicaltrials.gov .

Difficulties with thinking and problem solving are very common among breast cancer survivors. We tested a computerized cognitive training program for 41 breast cancer survivors. The training program was associated with significant improvements in thinking and problem-solving skills. Our findings demonstrate potential for our online, home-based cognitive training program to improve cognitive difficulties among breast cancer survivors. Background A majority of breast cancer (BC) survivors, particularly those treated with chemotherapy, experience long-term cognitive deficits that significantly reduce quality of life. Among the cognitive domains most commonly affected include executive functions (EF), such as working memory, cognitive flexibility, multitasking, planning, and attention. Previous studies in other populations have shown that cognitive training, a behavioral method for treating cognitive deficits, can result in significant improvements in a number of cognitive skills, including EF. Materials and Methods In this study, we conducted a randomized controlled trial to investigate the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of a novel, online EF training program in long-term BC survivors. A total of 41 BC survivors (21 active, 20 wait list) completed the 48 session training program over 12 weeks. The participants were, on average, 6 years after therapy. Results Cognitive training led to significant improvements in cognitive flexibility, verbal fluency and processing speed, with marginally significant downstream improvements in verbal memory as assessed via standardized measures. Self-ratings of EF skills, including planning, organizing, and task monitoring, also were improved in the active group compared with the wait list group. Conclusions Our findings suggest that EF skills may be improved even in long-term survivors by using a computerized, home-based intervention program. These improvements may potentially include subjective EF skills, which suggest a transfer of the training program to real-world behaviors.

Recent research has demonstrated that survivors of childhood cancer are at risk for a myriad of late effects that affect physical and mental quality of life. We discuss the patterns and prevalence of neurocognitive problems commonly experienced by survivors of CNS tumors and acute lymphoblastic leukemia, the two most commonly researched cancer diagnoses. Research documenting the direct effects of tumor location and treatment type and intensity is presented, and patient characteristics that moderate outcomes (eg, age at diagnosis and sex) are discussed. Potential biologic mechanisms of neurotoxic treatment exposures, such as cranial irradiation and intrathecal and high-dose antimetabolite chemotherapy, are reviewed. Genetic, brain imaging, and neurochemical biomarkers of neurocognitive impairment are discussed. Long-term survivors of childhood cancer are also at risk for physical morbidity (eg, cardiac, pulmonary, endocrine) and problems with health behaviors (eg, sleep); research is reviewed that demonstrates these health problems contribute to neurocognitive impairment in survivors with or without exposure to neurotoxic therapies. We conclude this review with a discussion of literature supporting specific interventions that may be beneficial in the treatment of survivors who already experience neurocognitive impairment, as well as in the prevention of impairment manifestation.

Risk of developing Alzheimer's disease is increased by older age, genetic factors, and several medical risk factors. Studies have also suggested that dietary and lifestyle factors may influence risk, raising the possibility that preventive strategies may be effective. This body of research is incomplete. However, because the most scientifically supported lifestyle factors for Alzheimer's disease are known factors for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes, it is reasonable to provide preliminary guidance to help individuals who wish to reduce their risk. At the International Conference on Nutrition and the Brain, Washington, DC, July 19-20, 2013, speakers were asked to comment on possible guidelines for Alzheimer's disease prevention, with an aim of developing a set of practical, albeit preliminary, steps to be recommended to members of the public. From this discussion, 7 guidelines emerged related to healthful diet and exercise habits.

No abstract

Sleep problems are highly prevalent in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy. This article reviews existing evidence on etiology, associated symptoms, and management of sleep problems associated with chemotherapy treatment during cancer. It also discusses limitations and methodological issues of current research. The existing literature suggests that subjectively and objectively measured sleep problems are the highest during the chemotherapy phase of cancer treatments. A possibly involved mechanism reviewed here includes the rise in the circulating proinflammatory cytokines and the associated disruption in circadian rhythm in the development and maintenance of sleep dysregulation in cancer patients during chemotherapy. Various approaches to the management of sleep problems during chemotherapy are discussed with behavioral intervention showing promise. Exercise, including yoga, also appear to be effective and safe at least for subclinical levels of sleep problems in cancer patients. Numerous challenges are associated with conducting research on sleep in cancer patients during chemotherapy treatments and they are discussed in this review. Dedicated intervention trials, methodologically sound and sufficiently powered, are needed to test current and novel treatments of sleep problems in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy. Optimal management of sleep problems in patients with cancer receiving treatment may improve not only the well-being of patients, but also their prognosis given the emerging experimental and clinical evidence suggesting that sleep disruption might adversely impact treatment and recovery from cancer.

Although the role of IQ in the diagnosis of developmental dyslexia remains controversial, the dominant clinical and research approaches rely on a discrepancy definition requiring reading skill to be below the level expected by an individual’s IQ. Here, with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we examined whether differences in brain activation during phonological processing that are characteristic of dyslexia are similar or dissimilar in children with poor reading ability who had either high (discrepant) or low (non-discrepant) IQ scores. In two independent samples of 131 children, using univariate and multivariate pattern analyses, poor readers with discrepant or non-discrepant IQ scores exhibited similar patterns of reduced brain activation in brain regions including left parieto-temporal and occipito-temporal regions. These results converge with behavioral evidence that poor readers have similar kinds of reading difficulties in relation to phonological processing regardless of IQ.