New findings strongly recommend that whole brain radiation therapy (WBRT) causes significant damage to cognitive function in patients with brain metastases, overwhelming any perceived benefits of the treatment. Researchers from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center are presenting their findings at the plenary session of the American Society for Clinical Oncology’s 2015 annual meeting. The research follows up on randomized studies that were conducted in order to determine a stronger relationship between cognitive damage and this treatment. “The question we were left with was understanding the toxicities associated with whole brain radiation therapy, specifically cognitive function,” said the lead author of the study. “We needed to understand what’s worse — the cognitive impact of the whole brain radiation therapy, or, in other words, the therapy itself, or the recurrence of tumors. Our study gives us the clearest picture of the impact of WBRT on cognitive function. To date, we’ve really not had that.” The study revealed higher rates of cognitive progression (defined in the study as a cognitive decline in any of the seven tests) was 92 percent prevalent in those who had undergone WBRT compared to the 62 percent in those who had not. To learn more about this study, click here.