aDepartment of Oncology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.
J Psychosoc Oncol. 2012;30(5):556-72. doi: 10.1080/07347332.2012.703768.
Chemotherapy-related cognitive impairment, known as "chemobrain," has been described as a side effect of chemotherapy and is associated with cognitive changes on quality of life especially among older cancer survivors. This longitudinal feasibility study examined the relationship between physical fitness, cognitive health, and quality of life among two groups of older adults: those on chemotherapy, and those who have completed chemotherapy. To assess cognitive health, we used the Montreal Cognitive Assessment and demographic information from the Healthy Brain Questionnaire. For quality of life, we used the McGill Quality of Life assessment. Physical activity was assessed using Metabolic Equivalency Tasks from the Compendium of Physical Activities classification system. t-Tests and regression analyses indicated that at Time 1 those on chemotherapy had lower cognitive health scores than those off chemotherapy. Yet at Time 2, as physical activities increased, cognitive health and quality of life improved for those on chemotherapy. However, those who had completed chemotherapy also benefited from an increase in physical activities over time. The results have implications for health care practitioners in oncology settings to better inform patients of cognitive challenges resulting from chemotherapy and the importance of participation in physical activities. Future research should compare different age groups among a larger sample.
化疗相关认知障碍，即“化疗脑”，被描述为化疗的一种副作用，与癌症幸存者，尤其是老年人的生活质量认知改变有关。这项纵向可行性研究调查了两组老年人的身体健康、认知健康和生活质量之间的关系：正在接受化疗的老年人和已完成化疗的老年人。为了评估认知健康，我们使用了蒙特利尔认知评估和来自健康大脑问卷的人口统计学信息。为了评估生活质量，我们使用了麦吉尔生活质量评估。使用活动分类系统的代谢当量任务来评估身体活动。t 检验和回归分析表明，在时间 1 时，正在接受化疗的人的认知健康评分低于已完成化疗的人。然而，在时间 2 时，随着身体活动的增加，接受化疗的人的认知健康和生活质量有所改善。然而，随着时间的推移，已完成化疗的人也从身体活动的增加中受益。研究结果对肿瘤学环境中的医疗保健从业者具有启示意义，有助于更好地告知患者化疗引起的认知挑战以及参与身体活动的重要性。未来的研究应该在更大的样本中比较不同年龄组。
