Exploration of Prostate Cancer Treatment Induced Neurotoxicity with Neuroimaging; Final rept. 24 Oct 2005-23 Apr 2008

摘要

Androgens are critical for the maintenance of brain structure and function with particular importance for maintaining memory. Thus, men on androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) are at risk for memory failure and decreased quality of life. Direct assessment of ADT effects on the brain have not been made but are now possible with modern noninvasive neuroimaging techniques and analysis tools. We used magnetic resonance diffusion tensor imaging to assess white matter integrity and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to investigate ADT effects on the brain. Preliminary analyses suggest that men on ADT have more white matter loss in prefrontal cortex and poorer memory than expected for men in this age range. Men with prostate cancer have more prefrontal fMRI activity than healthy men. Additional analyses will examine group differences in specific regions of interest and relate brain activity to levels of memory performance. This study suggests that noninvasive imaging techniques will be useful to understand the long-term consequences of ADT.