Androgen deprivation therapy and cognitive decline—associations with brain connectomes, endocrine status, and risk genotypes

Background Evidence suggests that prostate cancer (PC) patients undergoing androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) are at risk for cognitive decline (CD), but the underlying mechanisms are less clear. In the present study, changes in cognitive performance and structural brain connectomes in PC patients undergoing ADT were assessed, and associations of cognitive changes with endocrine status and risk genotypes were explored. Methods Thirty-seven PC patients underwent cognitive assessment, structural MRI, and provided blood samples prior to ADT and after 6 months of treatment. Twenty-seven age- and education-matched healthy controls (HCs) underwent the same assessments. CD was determined using a standardized regression-based approach and defined as z -scores ≤ −1.64. Changes in brain connectomes were evaluated using graph theory. Associations of CD with testosterone levels and genotypes ( APOE , COMT , BDNF ) were explored. Results Compared with HCs, PC patients demonstrated reduced testosterone levels ( p < 0.01) and higher rates of decline for 13 out of 15 cognitive outcomes, with three outcomes related to two cognitive domains, i.e., verbal memory and visuospatial learning and memory, reaching statistical significance ( p ≤ 0.01–0.04). Testosterone level changes did not predict CD. COMT Met homozygote PC patients evidenced larger reductions in visuospatial memory compared with Val carriers ( p = 0.02). No between-group differences were observed in brain connectomes across time, and no effects were found of APOE and BDNF . Conclusions Our results indicate that PC patients undergoing ADT may evidence CD, and that COMT Met homozygotes may be at increased risk of CD. The results did not reveal changes in brain connectomes or testosterone levels as underlying mechanisms. More research evaluating the role of ADT-related disruption of the dynamics of the hypothalamic–pituitary–gonadal axis is needed.