Reduce the Side Effects of Whole Brain Radiation

Scientists at Wake Forest University Medical Center are studying whether the same drugs that fight obesity and diabetes may be able to also prevent a common side effect of cancer treatment - the cognitive problems that can follow whole-brain radiation.

"Twenty to fourty percent of patients who get whole-brain radiation develop cognitive impairment within a year," says Mike Robbins, Ph.D., professor of radiation biology. "Their families and friends notice that they aren't as sharp as they used to be. The impairment is chronic and progressive." These cognitive problems can include difficulty with concentration, language, memory and abstract reasoning.

Robbins is testing whether drugs designed to block certain receptors in the brain can help prevent brain injury from radiation. About 175,000 cancer patients each year receive radiation treatments that target the whole brain or large areas of the brain.

Currently, there are no known treatments to prevent cognitive impairment that can result from the treatment. The researchers believe the cause may be chronic inflammation or oxidative stress, which occurs when cells cannot remove free radicals, or structurally unstable cells that can damage healthy cells. In laboratory studies, they have explored the use of drugs that block peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs). These receptors are known to control fat and glucose metabolism, and new evidence suggests they are also involved in inflammation.

Robbins has said, "If our theory is successful in the laboratory, this could easily be applied to patients. We know the drugs don't promote tumor growth, and in some cases may inhibit it." This is one of several research projects looking for way to reduce the side effects of whole brain radiation. Robbins is also evaluating a blood pressure medication and a drug used to treat Alzheimer's disease as potential treatments for patients undergoing radiation. He has worked for more than 20 years on the effects of radiation in normal tissue.

Contact: Karen Richardson
krchrdsn@wfubmc.edu
336-716-4453
Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center
http://www.wfubmc.edu