title: Disrupted brain network functional dynamics and hyper-correlation of structural and functional connectome topology in patients with breast cancer prior to treatment.
abstract: Several previous studies have demonstrated that cancer chemotherapy is associated with brain injury and cognitive dysfunction. However, evidence suggests that cancer pathogenesis alone may play a role, even in non-CNS cancers.
  
  
  
  Using a multimodal neuroimaging approach, we measured structural and functional connectome topology as well as functional network dynamics in newly diagnosed patients with breast cancer. Our study involved a novel, pretreatment assessment that occurred prior to the initiation of any cancer therapies, including surgery with anesthesia. We enrolled 74 patients with breast cancer age 29-65 and 50 frequency-matched healthy female controls who underwent anatomic and resting-state functional MRI as well as cognitive testing.
  
  
  
  Compared to controls, patients with breast cancer demonstrated significantly lower functional network dynamics (p= .046) and cognitive functioning (p< .02, corrected). The breast cancer group also showed subtle alterations in structural local clustering and functional local clustering (p< .05, uncorrected) as well as significantly increased correlation between structural global clustering and functional global clustering compared to controls (p= .03). This hyper-correlation between structural and functional topologies was significantly associated with cognitive dysfunction (p= .005).
  
  
  
  Our findings could not be accounted for by psychological distress and suggest that non-CNS cancer may directly and/or indirectly affect the brain via mechanisms such as tumor-induced neurogenesis, inflammation, and/or vascular changes, for example. Our results also have broader implications concerning the importance of the balance between structural and functional connectome properties as a potential biomarker of general neurologic deficit.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuro-oncology University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston TX USA.
authors.forename: Shelli R
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-4745-8014
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Kesler
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford CA USA.
authors.forename: Marjorie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Adams
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford CA USA.
authors.forename: Melissa
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Packer
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuro-oncology University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Houston TX USA.
authors.forename: Vikram
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Rao
authors.affiliation: School of Nursing University of Texas at Austin Austin TX USA.
authors.forename: Ashley M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Henneghan
authors.affiliation: Division of Medical Oncology Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford CA USA.
authors.forename: Douglas W
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Blayney
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Stanford University School of Medicine Stanford CA USA.
authors.forename: Oxana
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Palesh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001921:Brain / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000150:complications*; D063132:Connectome / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008875:Middle Aged; D009415:Nerve Net / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: MRI; brain; cancer; cognition; connectome; fMRI; neuroimaging