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UBC research shows that chemotherapy can lead to
excessive mind wandering and an inability to
concentrate. Dubbed ‘chemo-brain,’ the negative
cognitive effects of the cancer treatment have long
been suspected, but the UBC study is the first to
explain why patients have difficulty paying
attention.
Many breast cancer survivors (BCS) report cognitive
problems following chemotherapy, yet controversy
remains concerning which cognitive domains are
affected. This study investigated a domain crucial
to daily function: the ability to maintain attention
over time.
Breast cancer survivors were asked to complete a set
of tasks while researchers in the Departments of
Psychology and Physical Therapy monitored their
brain activity.
What they found is that the minds of people with
chemo-brain lack the ability for sustained focused
thought.
“A healthy brain spends some time wandering and some
time engaged,” said Todd Handy, a professor of
psychology at UBC. “We found that chemo brain is a
chronically wandering brain, they’re essentially
stuck in a shut out mode.”
Handy explains that healthy brains function in a
cyclic way. People can focus on a task and be
completely engaged for a few seconds and then will
let their mind wander a bit.
The research team that included former PhD student
Julia Kam, the first author of the study, found that
chemo brains tend to stay in that disengaged state.
To make matters worse, even when women thought they
were focusing on a task, the measurements indicated
that a large part of their brain was turned off and
their mind was wandering.
The researchers also found evidence that these women
were more focused on their inner world. When the
women were not performing a task and simply asked to
relax, their brain was more active compared to
healthy women.
This study was recently published in the journal
Clinical Neurophysiology.
For more information
Clinical Neurophysiology
Sustained attention abnormalities in breast cancer
survivors with cognitive deficits post chemotherapy:
An electrophysiological study
The
University of British Columbia
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