12070 Background: Cognitive impairment is a prevalent side effect of chemotherapy. We have previously shown that chemotherapy treatment is associated with worse performance on the Rapid Visual Processing test (RVP), an objective measure of sustained attention, over time compared to non-cancer controls. Better understanding of the biologic mechanisms underlying cognitive impairment in cancer patients is needed. The pro-inflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) has been implicated in increasing blood brain barrier (BBB) permeability, which in turn is associated with cognitive impairment. This study assessed the relationships of TNFα and S100β, a biomarker of BBB permeability, to each other and to RVP performance over time. Methods: We analyzed a subset of participants (n = 89 patients, n = 52 controls, mean age = 60) from a prospective longitudinal study of women with breast cancer receiving chemotherapy and non-cancer controls. TNFα and S100β were measured in serum pre-chemotherapy (T1, ≤7 days before first treatment) and post-chemotherapy (T2, ≤1 month after last treatment) and at corresponding times for controls. Sustained attention was assessed by total correct rejections on the RVP test at T1 and T2. Separate linear regression models including all participants were used to relate 1) baseline TNFα and S100β levels to change in RVP performance over time, 2) change in TNFα and S100β to change in RVP performance over time, and 3) change in TNFα to change in S100β. Models were adjusted for age. 4) T-tests were used to compare the TNFα and S100β change scores (T1 to T2) of patients vs controls. Results: Greater increase (T1 to T2) in the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNFα was associated with worse cognition, measured by performance on RVP over time (p = 0.02). Higher baseline S100β, a biomarker of BBB permeability, was associated with worse performance on RVP over time (p = 0.09). Increase in TNFα was associated with increase in S100β (p = 0.11). S100β increased from T1 to T2 in patients relative to controls (p = 0.09). Conclusions: These results suggest that higher TNFα may be related to increases in blood brain barrier permeability and worse cognition. Future studies will further define the link between inflammation, blood brain barrier permeability and chemotherapy-related cognitive decline, with the goal of informing the development of new interventions. Funding: R01CA231014, T32CA102618, DP2CA195765, UG1CA189961.
The relationship between blood‐brain barrier permeability and cerebral blood flow in cognitive impairment
