Effects of DL-3-n-butylphthalide on Chemotherapy-Induced Cognitive Impairment

Chemotherapy-related cognitive Impairment (CICI) is a series of neurocognitive deficits experienced during and after cancer chemotherapy. Studies have reported that CICI affects 25% to 75% of survivors and can persist for years after chemotherapy is discontinued, causing more severe progressive manifestations and placing a heavy burden on families and society. Numerous studies have proposed several potential mechanisms and etiologies for CICI, including direct neurotoxicity, disruption of the blood-brain barrier, reduced hippocampal neurogenesis, white matter abnormalities, secondary neuroinflammatory responses, and increased oxidative stress. At present, there is no clear and effective diagnosis and therapy for CICI, and how to diagnose and treat cognitive impairment caused by chemotherapy effectively is still the focus and difficulty.

Based on the previous consensus on the application of dl-3-n-butylphthalide, butylphthalein can play a neuroprotective role by reducing oxidative stress and inflammatory response, inhibiting neuronal apoptosis, improving mitochondrial function and other mechanisms, and significantly improve the performance of the central nervous system caused by cerebral ischemia and vascular dementia. However, the increase of neuroinflammatory response and oxidative stress is precisely one of the potential mechanisms of CICI pathogenesis. Therefore, based on the above findings, this study hypothesized that dl-3-n-butylphthalide would also have considerable efficacy in the treatment of CICI.