Impaired neurocognitive functioning 3 months following diagnosis of high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia: A report from the Children’s Oncology Group

Hardy KK, Kairalla JA, Gioia AR, Weisman HS, Gurung M, Noll RB, Hinds PS, Hibbitts E, Salzer WL, Burke MJ, Winick NJ, Embry L. Impaired neurocognitive functioning 3 months following diagnosis of high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia: A report from the Children’s Oncology Group. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 2023 Jul;70(7):e30350. doi: 10.1002/pbc.30350. Epub 2023 May 2. PubMed PMID: 37129114; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10205681.

Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common pediatric cancer diagnosis. Cognitive late effects develop in 20–40% of ALL survivors, but the course of declines is unclear. The aim of this paper is to characterize cognitive functioning, and its association with patient-reported outcomes, early in treatment. 483 children with high-risk ALL, aged 6–12 years at diagnosis, consented to the neurocognitive study embedded in a prospective therapeutic trial, Children’s Oncology Group (COG) AALL1131. A computerized neurocognitive battery (Cogstate) was administered 3-months post-diagnosis assessing reaction time, visual attention, working memory, visual learning, and executive functioning. Parent-reported executive functioning and patient-reported physical symptoms were also collected.