Psychosocial aspects of neoplastic disease: II. Affective and cognitive effects of chemotherapy in cancer patients

Abstract

A battery of cognitive and affective tests administered to 50 consecutively admitted medical oncology patients revealed cognitive impairment to be a common occurrence in the absence of affective disorders or other psychopathology. Chemotherapy was the major variable associated with cognitive impairment in these patients. These findings suggest that the consultant psychiatrist should be aware of chemotherapy as a possible source of behavioral change and emotional distress in cancer patients.