open access: “Doctor, Will the Treatment You Are Recommending Cause Chemobrain?” JCO

Blogger's Note: actually it has been closer to 2 decades (or more); most of the prior research focused on breast cancer patients as is the case with the references in this article

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"For more than a decade, patients and their oncologists have been sharing conversations about cognitive complaints after chemotherapy treatment.¹ Early on, only occasional patients complained of trouble with concentration and memory during treatment, with a minority noting persistence beyond the end of treatment. The oncologist, who rarely heard this complaint, could be dismissive, saying that the drugs the patient received did not cross the blood-brain barrier, and therefore, it was unlikely that the difficulties were related to the cancer treatment. Post-treatment cognitive complaints became much more evident during the late 1990s and early 21st century as adjuvant treatment regimens intensified and autologous bone marrow transplantation became more common in adults.<sup>2,3 ......."

"</sup>In summary, patient complaints of persistent cognitive difficulties after cancer treatment ends must not be dismissed, given that there is mounting evidence for the biologic effects of cancer treatments on behavioral symptoms, and cognitive complaints are one of the most troublesome of these manifestations.^{21,40,41..."......}We can no longer deny the existence of this long-term effect of cancer treatment; we must work to tailor future treatments to minimize this adverse outcome."