Lower tumor burden is associated with better cognitive function in patients with chronic phase chronic myeloid leukemia

Abstract

Cognitive function was assessed in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia in the chronic phase (CML-CP) receiving tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) therapy using the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA). Cross-sectional assessments of 100 newly diagnosed patients and 584 patients receiving TKI therapy for >1 year showed that 31 (31.0%) and 191 (32.7%) patients had mild cognitive impairment, respectively. In the multivariable analyses, higher percentages of blood blasts were associated with a worse MoCA score at diagnosis [β = −0.29, 95% confidence interval (−0.54, −0.03), p = .027]; deeper molecular response [versus < major molecular response, β = 0.74 (0.07, 1.40), p = .029], better MoCA score on TKI therapy. Increased MoCA scores were observed after 12 months of TKI therapy in 42 patients who were regularly followed up (p = .005). Lower tumor burden is associated with better cognitive function in CML-CP patients both at diagnosis and during TKI therapy.

Keywords:

• Chronic myeloid leukemia
• cognitive function
• tumor burden
• therapy response
• tyrosine kinase inhibitor

Acknowledgments

The authors thank all the patients for their contributions to this study. We also thank American Journal Experts (www.journalexperts.com) for providing editorial assistance.

Ethical approval

The study protocol was approved by the ethics committee of Peking University People’s Hospital.

Informed consent

Written informed consent was obtained from all patients.

Consent for publication

Written informed consent for publication was obtained from all participants.

Author contributions

Qian Jiang, Jun Zhang, and Yongjie Li designed the study. Qian Jiang treated the patients. Zongru Li and Li Peng evaluated cognitive function using the MoCA. Qian Jiang, Zongru Li, Li Peng, Jun Zhang, and Yongjie Li drafted the manuscript. Li Peng and Jun Zhang advised on the preparation of the manuscript. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflicts of interest were reported by the authors.

Data availability statement

The data of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [Grant Nos. 81770161 and 81970140].