Grant: Project Grant

With earlier cancer detection and the increased success of cancer therapies, more individuals with cancer are surviving their diagnoses, and are doing so for longer durations. Thus, increased attention is warranted to address survivorship issues which adversely impact patients' quality of life. A serious consequence of cancer treatment is 'chemo-fog', referred to in the scientific literature as cancer related neurocognitive dysfunction. Chemo-fog adversely effects concentration, processing speed, short-term memory and depressive symptoms, amongst other aspects of function. More than 30% of patients report long-term cognitive impairment following their cancer treatment. Survivors have difficulties in returning to their normal lives due to the effects of chemo-fog, including limitations returning to work, challenges maintaining social relationships, and a sense of disempowerment that can impact short and long-term quality of life. Unfortunately, while many interventions have been studied (including drugs, psychological therapy, exercise and others), the best interventions to manage chemo-fog remain unclear. This research will employ knowledge synthesis methods (i.e. a systematic approach to search the medical literature for relevant studies and quantitatively analyze all associated clinical trial data) to address knowledge gaps related to the management of chemo-fog in cancer survivors. We will use an analytic framework allowing for the comparison of multiple therapies simultaneously based on all available evidence called network meta-analysis. We will partner with the Canadian Partnership Against Cancer, the CURE Foundation, the Canadian Association of Nurses in Oncology and Ontario Health to disseminate findings from this work collaboratively to maximize its impact for patients. This research has been driven by patient needs identified through the Ottawa Hospital's Regional Cancer Center.