School of Aging Studies, University of South Florida, Tampa, Florida 33647, USA.
Cancer. 2011 Apr 1;117(7):1369-76. doi: 10.1002/cncr.25685. Epub 2010 Nov 8.
Recent attention has focused on the negative effects of chemotherapy on the cognitive performance of cancer survivors. The current study examined modification of this risk by catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) genotype based on evidence in adult populations that the presence of a Val allele is associated with poorer cognitive performance.
Breast cancer survivors treated with radiotherapy (n = 58), and/or chemotherapy (n = 72), and 204 healthy controls (HCs) completed tests of cognitive performance and provided saliva for COMT genotyping. COMT genotype was divided into Val carriers (Val+; Val/Val, Val/Met) or COMT-Met homozygote carriers (Met; Met/Met).
COMT-Val+ carriers performed more poorly on tests of attention, verbal fluency, and motor speed relative to COMT-Met homozygotes. Moreover, COMT-Val+ carriers treated with chemotherapy performed more poorly on tests of attention relative to HC group members who were also Val+ carriers.
The results suggest that persons treated with chemotherapy for breast cancer who also possess the COMT-Val gene are susceptible to negative effects on their cognitive health. This research is important because it strives to understand the factors that predispose some cancer survivors to more negative quality-of-life outcomes.
最近人们关注到化疗对癌症幸存者认知表现的负面影响。本研究基于成年人群体中的证据，根据儿茶酚氧位甲基转移酶（COMT）基因型来探讨这种风险的改变，该证据表明存在 Val 等位基因与认知表现较差有关。
接受放疗（n=58）和/或化疗（n=72）治疗的乳腺癌幸存者，以及 204 名健康对照者（HCs）完成了认知表现测试，并提供唾液进行 COMT 基因分型。COMT 基因型分为 Val 携带者（Val+；Val/Val，Val/Met）或 COMT-Met 纯合子携带者（Met；Met/Met）。
COMT-Val+携带者在注意力、言语流畅性和运动速度测试中的表现比 COMT-Met 纯合子差。此外，接受化疗治疗的 COMT-Val+携带者在注意力测试中的表现比同时也是 Val+携带者的 HCs 组差。
结果表明，接受乳腺癌化疗治疗且携带 COMT-Val 基因的人容易受到认知健康的负面影响。这项研究很重要，因为它试图了解使一些癌症幸存者更容易出现更负面的生活质量结果的因素。
