Chemotherapy Can Impair Brain Functioning
Cognitive problems have been documented in a study of men following Chemotherapy for Testicular Cancer.
Advanced brain scans revealed how the neural network is impaired by chemotherapy. These changes could explain how cognitive problems arise in connection with chemotherapy – a phenomenon that is commonly known as “chemo brain”.
Scans show that patients’ neural networks are significantly impaired following chemotherapy. The brain may not be able to process information as effectively as earlier. The cognitive impairment may start within weeks after treatment or even after 10-20 years.
Although the new results need not be a reason to question the efficacy of chemotherapy in saving lives, it is a significant result because many cancer survivors desire to go back to their work and social life and chemo brain is a major hindrance to return to normal life.
It is important to understand how to improve the quality of life post chemotherapy since this issue is often neglected or overlooked. Many patients have difficulty finding help for the cognitive problem after chemotherapy.
A cognitive problem means a person struggles to remember or perform tasks like going to work or participate in a conversation. It leads to loss of verbal memory, a marked drop in processing speed and executive function. Not understood why chemo brain occurs, a number of recent studies, mainly in breast cancer, have documented cancer patients’ experiences of memory impairment and other cognitive problems following chemotherapy.
The major debate at the moment is whether the chemicals themselves in chemotherapy are to be blamed for chemo brain or not. Previous studies have shown that the mere thought of receiving chemotherapy could cause cognitive dysfunction. Stress can also be a cause to the problem. Another study on other types of cancer suggests that chemotherapy can lead to reduced efficiency in the brain’s neural networks, which can result in poor cognitive function. The biggest limitation to the current research study is having a small sample size. That would impact on the uncertainty of the conclusions drawn. However, the results are in line with the earlier studies.
Rasayu Cancer Clinic’s View
The study is mostly confined to breast cancer and a few testicular cancer studies. It is significant to note that these organs have a deep relationship with the state of mind from Ayurvedic point of view. Any impact on these sites will have repercussions on the mental and cognitive structure of humans.
The impact of chemotherapy on the cognitive abilities is equally important and further study is needed to prove if the chemo drugs could also be a reason.
