Understanding the Time Course of Cancer-Associated Cognitive Decline: Does Impairment Precede Diagnosis?

Menée aux Pays-Bas à partir de données portant sur 2 059 patients atteints d'un cancer du système nerveux périphérique diagnostiqué entre 1989 et 2013 et portant sur 4 118 témoins, cette étude analyse l'évolution de leurs fonctions cognitives avant le diagnostic de la maladie

Résumé en anglais

It is increasingly clear that non-central nervous system cancers and their treatment are associated with short-and long-term cognitive deficits [1, 2]. Cancer-associated cognitive decline (CACD) can have a profound effect on patients’ lives. Patients often report that CACD is distressing [3]and makes it difficult to resume work, social, and family activities [3, 4]. Although much of empirical work has focused on how cancer treatment may impact cognitive performance, recent evidence suggests that cognition may be negatively impacted at the point of diagnosis [5, 6]. The source of these pre-treatment differences may be shared risk factors for impaired cognitive functioning and cancer [7], as well as biological processes associated with tumor growth [8].