Several Spanish scientists have begun to decipher How the cognitive alterations suffered by patients with brain metastases are producedwhich opens up promising lines of research both to improve the quality of life of these people and for the early detection of metastasis.
The study, which stars this Wednesday on the cover of the scientific journal Cancer Cellis the result of multidisciplinary research led by researchers from the Higher Council for Scientific Research (CSIC) and the National Cancer Research Center (CNIO), who have concluded that Brain tumors “hack” communication between neurons.
The objective of the research group was explore what causes the cognitive impairment suffered by almost half of patients with brain metastases (approximately 44%), and which manifests itself, for example, in behavioral changes, memory loss or loss of skills, such as driving, explained Manuel Valiente, director of the CNIO Brain Metastasis group and one of the authors of the investigation.
Until now it was intuited that this cognitive deterioration was due to the mere presence of the metastasis, which put pressure on the neuronal tissue; but the fact that the size of the tumor mass did not correspond to the magnitude of the alterations opened up unknowns that are now beginning to be answered.
Behavioral experiments in three types of metastases
Through experiments on the behavior of three types of metastases (lung, breast, and melanoma cancer) in mice and through computational analysis and artificial intelligence, researchers have seen that when cancer metastasizes to the brain alters brain chemistry, and interferes with neural communication (neurons communicate through electrical impulses).
By measuring the electrical activity of the brain of mice with and without metastases, they have observed that the electrophysiological recordings were totally different.
«Just by looking at neural activity, we could predict whether or not there were metastases in the brain, and, if there were, what type of metastasis it was.“, Valiente pointed out.
Open the door to important discoveries
In short, scientists have verified that metastasis leaves a very clear mark on brain activity, which “opens enormous possibilities” towards important findings, such as the detection of metastasis at a very early stage, added Brave.
At the same time, they have identified a molecule, EGR1, with a potentially important role in this process of cognitive alteration, which would allow the development of drugs aimed at alleviating, or directly preventing, patients with metastases from suffering neurocognitive problems.
The discovery will allow guide strategies against brain metastasis, “not only to kill tumor cells” as is done now, but to the development of less invasive treatments.
“It is a totally pioneering work that opens an unexplored path”, Another of the authors, Liset Menéndez de La Prida, director of the Laboratory of Neural Circuits of the Cajal Institute (CSIC), has detailed it in a statement released by the center.
In this line, Menéndez de La Prida will advance, from now on, in the integration of the recording of brain activity with the analysis of the molecules involved in it “to develop new diagnostic probes for brain tumors”, within the framework of the project European NanoBright, which seeks non-invasive techniques to treat brain pathologies.
For his part, the director of the CNIO Brain Metastasis group will study in depth and more systematically the cognitive state of patients with brain metastasis.
«We are going to try to collect data from the patients in the clinics with an online program, which allows us to observe aspects such as how long does it take a patient with cognitive impairment due to metastasis to answer a question“, he has detailed.
The data from the neurocognitive evaluation protocols of the participating patients will form part of RENACER, the National Brain Metastasis Network promoted by the CNIO, which contains the largest collection of living samples of brain metastasis in the world.
With the consent of the patients, the samples extracted in the operating room are available to the international scientific community in the CNIO Biobankand contribute to the advancement of science in studies such as the one published this Wednesday.
In addition, the researchers will use the METPlatform technology developed at the CNIO to assess the possible therapeutic activity of hundreds of compounds at the same time on brain tissue samples affected by metastasis