An Activation Likelihood Estimation Meta-Analysis of Voxel-Based Morphometry Studies of Chemotherapy-Related Brain Volume Changes in Breast Cancer

Sonya Utecht; Horacio Gomez-Acevedo; Jonathan Bona; Ellen van der Plas; Fred Prior; Linda J. Larson-Prior

doi:10.3390/cancers17101684

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An Activation Likelihood Estimation Meta-Analysis of Voxel-Based Morphometry Studies of Chemotherapy-Related Brain Volume Changes in Breast Cancer

Journal article

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Peer reviewed

An Activation Likelihood Estimation Meta-Analysis of Voxel-Based Morphometry Studies of Chemotherapy-Related Brain Volume Changes in Breast Cancer

Sonya Utecht, Horacio Gomez-Acevedo, Jonathan Bona, Ellen van der Plas, Fred Prior and Linda J. Larson-Prior

Cancers, Vol.17(10), 1684

05/16/2025

DOI: 10.3390/cancers17101684

PMCID: PMC12109750

PMID: 40427181

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https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers17101684View

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Abstract

Background/Objectives: Breast cancer chemotherapy patients and survivors face cognitive side effects that are not fully understood. Neuroimaging can provide a unique way to study these effects; however, it can be difficult to recruit large numbers of subjects. Our meta-analysis aims to synthesize volumetric neuroimaging data to highlight consistent findings in regional brain volume changes to further advance our understanding of the chemotherapy-related cognitive impairments faced by breast cancer patients and survivors. Methods: An Activation Likelihood Estimation analysis was conducted across the data from eight voxel-based morphometry experiments examining changes in the brains of breast cancer patients and survivors exposed to chemotherapy over time and three voxel-based morphometry experiments comparing chemotherapy-exposed subjects to controls with and without breast cancer. Results: There were consistent volume reductions across the whole brain in both experiment groups. The subjects’ over-time analysis showed peak consistency among the studies in the right inferior frontal gyrus and the left insula. Conclusions: Chemotherapy for non-central nervous system cancers such as breast cancer can cause physical changes throughout the brain that can be quantitatively measured by neuroimaging methodologies and may underlie persistent cognitive deficits in some individuals.

chemotherapy

chemotherapy-related cognitive impairment

cancer-related cognitive impairment

breast cancer

neuroimaging

magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)

meta-analysis

voxel-based morphometry (VBM)

brain volume

activation likelihood estimate (ALE)

Details

Title: Subtitle: An Activation Likelihood Estimation Meta-Analysis of Voxel-Based Morphometry Studies of Chemotherapy-Related Brain Volume Changes in Breast Cancer
Creators: Sonya Utecht - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Horacio Gomez-Acevedo - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Jonathan Bona - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Ellen van der Plas - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Fred Prior - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Linda J. Larson-Prior - University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Cancers, Vol.17(10), 1684
DOI: 10.3390/cancers17101684
PMID: 40427181
PMCID: PMC12109750
NLM abbreviation: Cancers (Basel)
ISSN: 2072-6694
eISSN: 2072-6694
Publisher: MDPI
Language: English
Date published: 05/16/2025
Academic Unit: Psychiatry; Stead Family Department of Pediatrics
Record Identifier: 9984824332102771

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