Background: Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) is one of the most frequently reported symptoms by breast cancer patients. However, it remains unclear precisely what contributing factors are present among chemotherapy-naïve breast cancer patients that contribute to CRCI. Thus, it is essential to identify potential factors related to CRCI that may occur before chemotherapy so that interventions can be employed to help prevent the worsening of CRCI.Objective: This study examined the association between intolerance of uncertainty (IU) and cognitive function among breast cancer patients before chemotherapy and explored whether anxiety mediates this association.Methods: A total of 58 females diagnosed with stage I-III breast cancer and scheduled for chemotherapy were included in this study. Data on cognitive function, IU, anxiety, and other relevant information were analyzed.Results: We found that higher IU was associated with higher anxiety and such higher anxiety was subsequently associated with lower cognitive function being reported by breast cancer patients who were scheduled for chemotherapy. The association between IU and cognitive function was largely mediated through anxiety with standardizedβ= −0.19 (SE = 0.07) for the indirect association via anxiety andβ= −0.2 (SE = 0.12) for the total association.Conclusions: IU shows an impact on cognitive function. Therefore, it is necessary to assess IU before chemotherapy, which may help detect patient risk for cognitive impairment early.
背景：癌症相关认知障碍是乳腺癌患者最常报告的症状之一。然而，目前尚不清楚初诊未接受化疗的乳腺癌患者中存在哪些具体因素会导致癌症相关认知障碍。因此，识别化疗前可能存在的与癌症相关认知障碍相关的潜在因素至关重要，以便采取干预措施防止认知障碍恶化。 目的：本研究探讨化疗前乳腺癌患者的不确定性不容忍与认知功能之间的关联，并考察焦虑是否在这一关联中起中介作用。 方法：本研究共纳入58名诊断为I-III期乳腺癌且计划接受化疗的女性患者。对认知功能、不确定性不容忍、焦虑及其他相关信息的数据进行分析。 结果：研究发现，较高的不确定性不容忍与较高的焦虑水平相关，而较高的焦虑水平进而与计划接受化疗的乳腺癌患者报告的较低认知功能相关。不确定性不容忍与认知功能之间的关联主要通过焦虑中介，其中通过焦虑的间接关联标准化β值为−0.19（标准误=0.07），总关联的β值为−0.2（标准误=0.12）。 结论：不确定性不容忍对认知功能具有影响。因此，有必要在化疗前评估不确定性不容忍，这可能有助于早期发现患者认知障碍的风险。
肿瘤(癌症)患者之家