title: Executive Function Alternations of Breast Cancer Patients After Chemotherapy: Evidence From Resting-state Functional MRI.
abstract: Chemotherapy has many side effects on breast cancer patients, including cognition and other brain functions impairment, which can be studied using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI). Our study aimed at investigating the executive function alternations of breast cancer patients after chemotherapy using resting-state fMRI.
  
  
  
  This study included 32 breast cancer patients (BC group) and 24 control subjects (HC group). The functional connectivity of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) of the two groups was calculated from the resting-state fMRI data, and the correlation between the strength of the right DLPFC's connectivity and the behavior performance was analyzed with two-tailed Pearson correlative analysis.
  
  
  
  Evaluation of the capability of processing various complex cognition events showed that the executive function of the BC group was impaired after chemotherapy in comparison with the HC group. The functional connectivities of the right DLPFC with the right inferior frontal gyrus, right medial frontal gyrus, and left superior temporal gyrus in the BC group were significantly decreased in comparison with those in the HC group, respectively. The executive deficits were found correlated with the functional connectivity between the right DLPFC and the right inferior frontal gyrus. Meantime, the functional connectivity from the right DLPFC to the right middle temporal gyrus and the precuneus was compensatorily increased in the BC group, respectively.
  
  
  
  These findings suggest that breast cancer patients after chemotherapy demonstrate executive control impairment, and provide evidence that the observed defects are correlated with alternations in the executive network of the brain.
authors.affiliation: Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Huangshan Rd. 443, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Breast Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, Anhui, China.
authors.forename: Yunwen
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.affiliation: Department of Automation, SSI Schaefer Systems International Limited, Nanjing Branch, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China.
authors.forename: Xiaofeng
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Jixi Rd. 218, Hefei, Anhui 230022, China.
authors.forename: Longxiang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Tao
authors.affiliation: Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Huangshan Rd. 443, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Quan
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Huangshan Rd. 443, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Yunpeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Bian
authors.affiliation: Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Huangshan Rd. 443, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoxuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania.
authors.forename: Yikang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Huangshan Rd. 443, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Weiping
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Jixi Rd. 218, Hefei, Anhui 230022, China. Electronic address: yuyongqiang@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Yongqiang
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: Center for Biomedical Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China, Huangshan Rd. 443, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China; Anhui Computer Application Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Meishan Rd. 103, Hefei, Anhui 230038, China. Electronic address: bqiu@ustc.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Bensheng
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Qiu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000970:Antineoplastic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000523:psychology*; D003071:Cognition / Q000187:drug effects; D056344:Executive Function / Q000187:drug effects*; D005260:Female; D005625:Frontal Lobe / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D010296:Parietal Lobe / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D000970:Antineoplastic Agents
keywords: Breast cancer; chemotherapy treatment; executive function; functional connectivity; resting-state functional MRI