A team of researchers has set out to better understand how chronic inflammation caused by stress might contribute to memory problems in cancer patients.
Their study aimed to contribute to broader research indicating that inflammation may significantly contribute to the decline in cognitive function that occurs as we age. This often manifests as mental sluggishness, memory lapses, and forgetfulness.
“It’s always been thought that inflammation can potentially have a connection between cognitive changes, even in non-cancer patients,” said Dr. Deena Mary Atieh Graham, a medical oncologist at the Hackensack University Medical Center and researcher in the study, per NBC 5.
The researchers are affiliated with UCLA and Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center. The first phase of their work was published last September in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.
Chronic inflammation and acute inflammation differ, the researchers said, per NBC 5.
Acute inflammation is visible, appearing as a cut, redness, or swelling. It is the body’s natural response to injury.
In contrast, chronic inflammation is often invisible, but it can take a toll on the body.
Obesity, which is an ongoing problem in the United States, has been linked to chronic inflammation by various studies.
One inflammatory marker, C-reactive protein (CRP), can be tested for in the blood.
“These inflammatory markers or proteins in your blood can be elevated when the body is under some form of stress,” explained Graham, per NBC 5.
The participants in the study were 400 female breast cancer survivors aged 60 and up, as well as a control group of 329 women of a similar age but cancer-free. Between September 2010 and March 2020, the researchers conducted blood tests and neuropsychological tests on these two groups. Participants were also asked to assess their own cognitive state by answering a questionnaire.
“Being able to test for levels of inflammation at the same time that cognition was being rigorously evaluated gave the [research] team a potential window into the biology underlying cognitive concerns,” said Elizabeth C. Breen, a professor emerita of psychiatry and biobehavioral sciences at the Cousins Center for Psychoneuroimmunology at UCLA and co-senior study author, per UCLA Health.
The researchers conducted these assessments up to six times over the course of five years for each group.
They found that CRP levels were significantly higher among the survivor participants than among the control participants. They also performed worse in neuropsychological testing compared to their cancer-free counterparts.
At the same time, the strongest correlation between higher CRP levels and a greater loss of cognitive function was found in the survivors’ questionnaires.
The researchers explained that this was likely due to the survivors being more attuned to the day-to-day cognitive changes they might experience than the tests could be.
“Our findings suggest that chronic inflammation, as measured by CRP, plays a mechanistic role in the development of cognitive problems in older breast cancer survivors,” explained Graham, per a news release from Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine.
The team believes that identifying a scientific predictor for memory problems is the first step in trying to help cancer survivors prevent them altogether, per NBC 5.
Oncology patients might benefit tremendously from lifestyle changes, such as increased physical activity and better sleep, as well as therapies that aim to lower inflammation levels.
The next step for the researchers is to see whether these interventions lower inflammation and demonstrate a reduced incidence of cognitive decline in cancer survivors.