Cytokines and Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor as Biomarkers of Cognitive Impairment Related to Breast Cancer and Its Treatments: A Systematic Review
Open accessAbstract
Breast cancer is a globally prevalent oncological disease whose treatments, while improving survival rates, often lead to adverse cognitive effects. Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and cytokines, key mediators of the inflammatory response, may play a significant role in these cognitive alterations. This systematic review (osf.io/vk37x) addresses the use of BDNF and cytokines as biomarkers of cognitive impairment in breast cancer animal models. A comprehensive literature search was conducted across the following databases: Web of Science, Scopus, ScienceDirect, PubMed, and Medline. Keywords used were: (“breast cancer” AND “cognitive impairment” AND (“brain derived neurotrophic factor” OR “cytokines”). A total of 9876 articles were identified, of which 17 studies met the inclusion criteria. For quality assessment the SYRCLE’s tool for assessing Risk of Bias was used. Neuroinflammatory and systemic inflammatory responses, particularly increases in pro-inflammatory cytokines (IL-6, IL-1β, TNF-α) and reductions in hippocampal BDNF, are consistently linked to breast cancer and chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment in animal models. Several interventions normalized these biomarkers and improved cognitive performance after chemotherapy. Anti-inflammatory cytokines (IL-10 or IL-4) were measured in fewer studies and recent research suggests that they could serve as potential protective biomarkers. BDNF, pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines may represent candidate biomarkers for cancer-related cognitive impairment.
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PRISMA-P Group, Moher, D., Shamseer, L., Clarke, M., Ghersi, D., Liberati, A., Petticrew, M., Shekelle, P., & Stewart, L. A. (2015) · Systematic Reviews · doi:10.1186/2046-4053-4-1 · Cited by 26,223 · cited 1× · see citing works
“This systematic review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines [51,52].”
Colucci-D’Amato, L., Speranza, L., & Volpicelli, F. (2020) · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · doi:10.3390/ijms21207777 · Cited by 991 · see citing works
Cognitive Training for Improving Executive Function in Chemotherapy-Treated Breast Cancer Survivors
Kesler, S., Hadi Hosseini, S. M., Heckler, C., Janelsins, M., Palesh, O., Mustian, K., & Morrow, G. (2013) · Clinical Breast Cancer · doi:10.1016/j.clbc.2013.02.004 · Cited by 300 · see citing works
Inflammatory Proteins in Plasma Are Associated with Severity of Alzheimer’s Disease
Leung, R., Proitsi, P., Simmons, A., Lunnon, K., Güntert, A., Kronenberg, D., Pritchard, M., Tsolaki, M., Mecocci, P., Kloszewska, I., et al. (2013) · PLoS ONE · doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0064971 · Cited by 160 · see citing works
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- Authors
- Fierro-Salgado, Y. T., Reiriz, M., Beltrán-Velasco, A. I., Calleja-Conde, J., Hernández-Oñativia, X., Uceda, S., & Echeverry-Alzate, V.
- Affiliations
- Universidad Nebrija (ES)
- NBC Group, School of Life and Nature Sciences, Nebrija University, 28240 Madrid, Spain
- ORCID
- Venue
- International Journal of Molecular Sciences
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2025-10-16
- Volume
- 26
- Issue
- 20
- Pages
- 10074
- ISSN
- 1422-0067 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC12563149
- OpenAlex
- W4415244919
- Cited by
- 7
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 7
- FWCI
- 1.21
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- International Journal of Molecular Sciences (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine › Cancer-related cognitive impairment studies
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Biological Psychiatry › Tryptophan and brain disorders
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Critical Care and Intensive Care Medicine › Intensive Care Unit Cognitive Disorders
- Keywords
- breast cancer, chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, cytokines, neuroinflammation, systemic inflammation, hippocampus, biomarkers, interleukin-6, IL-1β, TNF-α, IL-10, IL-4, animal models
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Breast Neoplasms, Female, Humans, Biomarkers, Cytokines, Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor, Cognitive Dysfunction
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