Neurocognitive Outcomes Following Proton Beam Radiation Therapy for Treatment of

描述（由申请人提供）：本候选人，丽莎Schum Kahalley，博士，是贝勒医学院儿科心理学系的助理教授，在德克萨斯州儿童癌症中心担任第二职务。拟议的职业发展奖概述了关键的指导，培训和研究经验，以准备博士Kahalley在神经认知迟发效应研究的独立研究计划。支持该应用程序的指导委员会由儿科神经心理学（Doug Ris，博士），神经肿瘤学（Daughh Okcu，医学博士，Murali Chintagumpala，医学博士）和纵向统计学（Paras Mehta，博士）的经验丰富的研究人员和临床医生组成。他们将监督这位候选人在神经心理学，纵向研究方法，科学写作和语法方面的专业培训，为她过渡到神经认知结果研究和研究独立做好准备。拟议的研究计划将提供这些具体重点领域的应用经验。脑肿瘤幸存者有持续治疗相关认知障碍的风险。对使用质子束放射治疗（PBRT）治疗儿童脑肿瘤的兴趣持续增长，因为许多人认为这种技术可以提高生存率，同时还可以保持生活质量。许多人预示着PBRT的临床潜力，通过最大限度地减少对健康脑组织的损害而不牺牲疾病控制来节省认知功能。尽管如此，迄今为止还没有关于儿童脑肿瘤PBRT后认知结果的公开报道。该提案包括两项研究，一项是横向研究，一项是纵向研究，旨在最大限度地提高这五年供资期的经验收益。研究1是一项前瞻性的纵向研究，对接受PBRT与单纯手术治疗的儿童脑肿瘤患者的神经认知结局和随时间的变化进行了研究。研究2是一项对既往接受PBRT与常规放射治疗的儿童脑肿瘤幸存者的神经认知结局进行横断面比较的研究。该提案符合NCI的战略目标，即提高癌症幸存者的生活质量，促进安全和公平的癌症护理，并促进知情决策。结果将具有临床价值，及时提供神经认知功能的初步报告和治疗方式之间的比较，这将是对PBRT晚期效应的稀疏文献的显著补充。这种研究环境的显着优势将促进这些研究的成功执行。特别是，德克萨斯州儿童癌症中心拥有全国最大的儿科神经肿瘤学项目之一，可以使用美国目前为数不多的用于治疗儿科脑肿瘤的质子治疗中心。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This candidate, Lisa Schum Kahalley, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Section of Psychology, Department of Pediatrics, at Baylor College of Medicine, with a secondary appointment in the Texas Children's Cancer Center. The proposed career development award outlines critical mentoring, training, and research experiences to prepare Dr. Kahalley for an independent research program in neurocognitive late effects research. The mentoring committee supporting this application consists of experienced researchers and clinicians in pediatric neuropsychology (Doug Ris, PhD), neuro-oncology (Fatih Okcu, MD, Murali Chintagumpala, MD), and longitudinal statistics (Paras Mehta, PhD). They will oversee this candidate's specialized training in neuropsychology, longitudinal research methods, and scientific writing and grantsmanship to prepare her to transition into neurocognitive outcome research and research independence. The proposed research plan will provide applied experience in these specific areas of focus. Brain tumor survivors are at risk for lasting treatment-related cognitive impairment. Interest in the use of proton beam radiation therapy (PBRT) for treatment of pediatric brain tumor continues to grow as many believe this technique could improve survival rates while also preserving quality of life outcomes. Many herald the clinical potential of PBRT to spare cognitive functioning by minimizing damage to healthy brain tissue without sacrificing disease control. Still, there are no published reports to date of cognitive outcomes following PBRT for pediatric brain tumor. This proposal includes two studies, one cross-sectional and one longitudinal, designed to maximize the empirical yield for this 5-year funding period. Study 1 is a prospective, longitudinal examination of neurocognitive outcomes and changes over time among patients treated for pediatric brain tumors with PBRT versus surgery alone. Study 2 is a cross-sectional comparison of neurocognitive outcomes between survivors of pediatric brain tumor previously treated with PBRT versus conventional radiation therapy. This proposal is consistent with NCI's strategic objectives to improve the quality of life for cancer survivors, promote safe and equitable cancer care, and foster informed decision making. Results will have clinical value, providing a timely initial report of neurocognitive functioning and comparison between treatment modalities that will be a notable addition to the sparse existent literature in PBRT late effects. Remarkable advantages of this research environment will facilitate the successful execution of these studies. In particular, Texas Children's Cancer Center has one of the largest pediatric neuro-oncology programs in the country with access to one of the few proton therapy centers in the US currently open for the treatment of pediatric brain tumor.