LAUSR

To study whether the neurocognitive functions were affected by brain metastases in patients, and what are the potential risk factors. A total of 172 patients with brain metastases were retrospectively analyzed. Prior to radiotherapy of brain metastases, the neurocognitive functions were evaluated by a wide range of tests including MOCA, VFT, HVLT-R, TMT-A, TMT-B and TOL. Kappa test was used to analyze the consistency of physical examination and neurocognitive assessment results. The related factors were analyzed with univariate and multivariate analysis. 53 out of 172 patients (30.8%) were identified with cognitive impairments by physical examination. The assessment with neurocognitive scales revealed that there were 148 cases of cognitive impairment (86.0%) and 24 cases of normal cognition (14.0%). Kappa=0.025, indicating that the difference between neurocognitive assessment results and physical examination was significant. The univariate analysis on the factors related to neurocognitive impairment revealed that the risk factors that may affect the neurocognitive functions included age, KPS, m-GPA score, RPA classification, whether the original tumor was under control, with or without brain metastases. After adjusting for education, the multivariate analysis showed that age≥45 years old, KPS≤70, RPA classification >2 and m-GPA score< 3 were independent risk factors for neurocognitive impairment. Patients with brain metastases were found to have various degrees of neurocognitive impairment prior to radiotherapy. The neurocognitive functions of patients can be more precisely evaluated by a comprehensive scale assessment. Age, KPS, RPA classification and m-GPA score are the main factors associated with neurocognitive impairment.