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Cited by 77Functional Brain Connectivity StudiesCancer-related cognitive impairment studiesAdvanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications

Disrupted brain network functional dynamics and hyper‐correlation of structural and functional connectome topology in patients with breast cancer prior to treatment

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Kesler, Shelli R., Adams, Marjorie, Packer, Melissa, Rao, Vikram, Henneghan, Ashley M., Blayney, Douglas W., Palesh, Oxana·2017·Brain and Behavior
DOI 10.1002/brb3.643PMC PMC5346525
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Abstract

Introduction: Several previous studies have demonstrated that cancer chemotherapy is associated with brain injury and cognitive dysfunction. However, evidence suggests that cancer pathogenesis alone may play a role, even in non‐CNS cancers. Methods: Using a multimodal neuroimaging approach, we measured structural and functional connectome topology as well as functional network dynamics in newly diagnosed patients with breast cancer. Our study involved a novel, pretreatment assessment that occurred prior to the initiation of any cancer therapies, including surgery with anesthesia. We enrolled 74 patients with breast cancer age 29–65 and 50 frequency‐matched healthy female controls who underwent anatomic and resting‐state functional MRI as well as cognitive testing. Results: Compared to controls, patients with breast cancer demonstrated significantly lower functional network dynamics (p = .046) and cognitive functioning (p < .02, corrected). The breast cancer group also showed subtle alterations in structural local clustering and functional local clustering (p < .05, uncorrected) as well as significantly increased correlation between structural global clustering and functional global clustering compared to controls (p = .03). This hyper‐correlation between structural and functional topologies was significantly associated with cognitive dysfunction (p = .005). Conclusions: Our findings could not be accounted for by psychological distress and suggest that non‐CNS cancer may directly and/or indirectly affect the brain via mechanisms such as tumor‐induced neurogenesis, inflammation, and/or vascular changes, for example. Our results also have broader implications concerning the importance of the balance between structural and functional connectome properties as a potential biomarker of general neurologic deficit.

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Kesler, S. R., Adams, M., Packer, M., Rao, V., Henneghan, A. M., Blayney, D. W., & Palesh, O.
Affiliations
  • The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (US)
  • Stanford Medicine (US)
  • Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford CA USA
  • The University of Texas at Austin (US)
Corresponding author
Kesler, Shelli R.
ORCID
Venue
Brain and Behavior
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2017-02-06
Volume
7
Issue
3
Pages
e00643-e00643
ISSN
  • 2157-9032 (ISSN-L)
  • 2162-3279
DOI
10.1002/brb3.643
PMC
PMC5346525
OpenAlex
W2587333167
Cited by
77
References
4
Citations by year
2026: 2 · 2025: 3 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 5 · 2022: 13 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 12 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 5
FWCI
5.97
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Brain and Behavior (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
Funders
National Cancer Institute (1R01CA172145)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Functional Brain Connectivity Studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine › Cancer-related cognitive impairment studies
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Radiology, Nuclear Medicine and Imaging › Advanced Neuroimaging Techniques and Applications
Keywords
breast cancer, structural connectome, functional connectome, local clustering, global clustering, cognitive impairment, brain network topology, neuroinflammation, neurovascular changes, pre-treatment assessment
MeSH terms
Adult, Aged, Brain, Breast Neoplasms, Female, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Middle Aged, Nerve Net, Connectome

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