A Handbook on ChemoBrain with Molecular and Clinical Background

Despite current dazzling advances in cancer treatment cancer still ranks second among the most important causes of death and is an important cause of morbidity given the side effects of anti-cancer treatment. Cancer survivors and cancer patients in remission after systemic anti-cancer treatments suffer from chronic and long-term side effects that they have a negative impact on quality of life. Chemotherapy- related cognitive dysfunction (Chemobrain) is one of these side effects and there is no clear consensus regarding both etiopathogenesis and diagnostic approach. Hypothesis regarding the inflammatory and proinflammatory processes genetic and epigenetic changes are the most accepted mechanisms for chemobrain which is thought to contribute to other conditions such as cancer-related fatigue and anemia in etiopathogenesis. Because of the contradictory studies about objective measurement tools used in clinical evaluation it is thought that biomarker or radiological imaging methods can also be used. In spite of all clinical molecular and radiological studies the known information about chemobrain has a very limited information volume besides the unknown ones. Therefore chemobrain is a true phenomenon beyond psychiatric and cancer-related symptoms and further molecular and clinical studies may increase treatment options in the future. In this article the literature about chemobrain is discussed on molecular basis as well as clinical features and morbidity results. In this handbook the literature about chemobrain is discussed on molecular basis as well as clinical features and morbidity results. Assoc. Prof. Özgür Tanrıverdi M.D for Internal Medicine & Medical Oncology M.Sc. for Molecular Biology & Genetics PhD Candidate for Gerontology (Elderly Health)