Stay Connected. Manage Your Care.
Access your health information anytime and anywhere, at home or on the go, with MyHealth.
- Message your clinic
- View your lab results
- Schedule your next appointment
- Pay your bill
The MyHealth mobile app from Stanford Health Care puts all your health information at your fingertips and makes managing your health care simple and quick.
Guest Services
24/7
We are available to assist you
whenever you need it. Give us a call at
650-498-3333 or
PHYSICIAN HELPLINE
Have a question? We're here to help! Call 1-866-742-4811
Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.
REFER A PATIENT
Fax 650-320-9443
Track your patients' progress and communicate with Stanford providers conveniently and securely.
Abstract
Many survivors of breast cancer show significant cognitive impairments, including memory deficits. Inflammation induced by chemotherapy may contribute to hippocampal changes that underlie these deficits. In this cross-sectional study, we measured bilateral hippocampal volumes from high-resolution magnetic resonance images in 42 chemotherapy-treated breast cancer survivors and 35 healthy female controls. Patients with breast cancer were, on average, 4.8 ± 3.4 years off-therapy. In a subset of these participants (20 breast cancer, 23 controls), we quantified serum cytokine levels. Left hippocampal volumes and memory performance were significantly reduced and interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) concentrations were significantly elevated in the breast cancer group compared to controls. In the breast cancer group, lower left hippocampal volume was associated with higher levels of TNFα and lower levels of IL-6 with a significant interaction between these two cytokines suggesting a potential modulatory effect of IL-6 on TNFα. Verbal memory performance was associated with cytokine levels and left hippocampal volume in both groups. These findings provide evidence of altered hippocampal volume and verbal memory difficulties following breast cancer chemotherapy that may be mediated by TNFα and IL-6.
View details for DOI 10.1016/j.bbi.2012.05.017
View details for PubMedID 22698992