14 DAY TRIAL // Undoubtedly, for patients that get rid of cancer thanks to chemotherapy, the sheer joy of being alive is enough to block any comment on the efficiency and the toll that the treatment takes on the body. The list of side-effects that chemotherapy causes has been extensively studied and discussed, and symptoms such as hair loss, anemia, weight loss or gain, pain, and water retention are well known. However, the most important effects that the chemicals have are not on the body, but on the mind, something that has not been sufficiently covered when presenting chemo as a treatment option.
In a new scientific study, experts demonstrated that the brain experienced a considerable amount of deterioration after chemotherapy sessions concluded. The same paper also shows that, in the case of women who undertook this treatment to combat breast cancer, their quality of life was adversely affected by the side-effects. The experts identify memory loss, the inability to concentrate, having difficulties in thinking, and other subtle, cognitive changes, as clear indicators of what they call a 'chemobrain.'
“These data underscore the very serious ways in which chemobrain can affect the life experiences of cancer survivors – emotionally, psychologically and economically. A clear understanding of the cognitive impairments experienced by survivors will aid researchers in developing targeted therapies and interventions aimed at improving or mitigating these post-treatment side effects,” the authors write in their new research paper, published in the latest issue of Springer's Journal of Cancer Survivorship.
The research was conducted by experts at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) Center for Culture and Health, and was led by scientist Dr. Saskia Subramanian. It is one of the first investigations to focus solely on the effects that chemotherapy-caused, cognitive impairments have on the everyday quality of life of breast-cancer survivors. Their influence on the women's work, and social network interactions was also studied, AlphaGalileo reports.
Most of the study participants said that they failed to receive any satisfactory answers from their healthcare providers, when they inquired about the symptoms they experienced, which have been associated with the chemobrain. Many of them also said that they were not properly informed about the side-effects before they began the procedures.