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Sketchpad Series

Psychological Risk Factors Associated with Objective and Subjective Pre-treatment Cancer-Related Cognitive Impairment: A Systematic Review

Poster Session D - Monday, March 31, 2025, 8:00 – 10:00 am EDT, Back Bay Ballroom/Republic Ballroom

Aideen Scriney¹, Lorna Gurren¹, Lisa Loughney², Pamela Gallagher¹, Lorraine Boran¹; ¹Dublin City University, ²Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland

Introduction: Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) describes issues patients can experience with attention, memory and focus. The aetiology of CRCI currently remains unclear. Despite approximately 10-30% of patients experiencing CRCI before treatment, there is a paucity of research on this timepoint. Exploring the role of anxiety and depression can aid in understanding how psychological variables may interact with CRCI. This review aims to explore the prevalence of objectively measured and subjectively reported pre-treatment CRCI and its association with anxiety and depression across cancer types. Methods: The review was conducted in line with PRISMA guidelines. Included databases: PsychINFO, CINAHL, MEDLINE, PubMed and EMBASE. Abstract and full text screening was conducted alongside a second reviewer. Final texts were assessed for quality using the JBI appraisal tools. Results: Database search resulted in 4,757 texts. After abstract screening,118 texts remained. Eighteen texts remained after full-text screening. Papers varied widely across cancer types and study design. Ten included a healthy control arm. Eleven directly reported the prevalence of pre-treatment CRCI. Most common subjective measures: FACT-Cognition, Attentional Function Index. Most common objective measures: The Trail Making Test, Digit-span, The Stroop colour-word. Preliminary synthesis of included studies indicates that there exists a positive association between the psychological factors of anxiety and depression and subjective CRCI. Conclusion: To our knowledge, this is the first review to assess the prevalence of pre-treatment CRCI across cancer types and associations with psychological factors. It is hoped that this review will highlight the potential role of psychological factors in CRCI.

Topic Area: EMOTION & SOCIAL: Emotion-cognition interactions