Chronic Fatigue in Cancer, Brain Connectivity and Reluctance to Engage in Physical Activity: A Mini-Review, 2021, André et al

A large amount of evidence shows that after a cancer diagnosis, patients significantly reduce their level of physical activity. Usually, this reduction is attributed to cancer-related fatigue. However, to our knowledge, no study has clearly demonstrated that fatigue alters effort-based decision-making in cancer.

This mini-review aimed to provide evidence that chronic fatigue in cancer patients causes changes in brain connectivity that impact effort-based decision-making. Indeed, three patterns of activation to compensate for dysfunctional networks have been reported: greater variability in the executive network and hyperactivation in the executive network, which account for less efficient and costly processes in the frontal cortex, and reduced deactivation in the default mode network. Nevertheless, these activation patterns are also observed with other factors, such as anticipatory stressors (worry, rumination or sleep loss), that might also cause reluctance to engage in physical activity.

Effort-based decision-making involving weighing costs against benefits and physical activity interventions should increase immediate benefits to facilitate engagement in effortful activities.

Open access, https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fonc.2021.774347/full

 

Confusing cause with effect...

 

The changes in brain connectivity may be the same in both cases but that same change is happening in two distinctly different situations. For the first encouraging more physical activity may prove problematic beyond a small amount or any amount at all possibly. For the second it seems to me that encouraging more physical activity might be of benefit if studied further.

I keep coming back to the same theme in all these papers as well as in reading media reports of covid. Science matters. Understanding what science is matters.

My sense, after all this time is that so many researchers steeped in the BPS propaganda (even when not themselves outright BPS researchers) can't seem to bring focus and reasoning to their work. The idea that 'everything is connected' and the idea of holistic thinking makes their work sloppy. Yes, people are not just parts but that doesn't mean that things that seem the same when looking at one piece or endpoint are indeed the same.

It also means that things that seem different when looking at one piece along the path are a result of something all together different. Or so it seems to me. I take this from life not from any science knowledge.

To finish the rant of these sorts of findings. There is never any depth. Where there is an ocean to explore they scoop out a sample and declare it the ocean. No depth and endless repetition putting lipstick on previous work and consider it improved on.

I admit this particular paper is no more deserving than so many before (maybe less) but it's been in the front of my mind with regards to how the general public have lost faith in science.

Whatever good might be found here -- I think they can do better.

 

I'm pretty sure no actual study has shown that water is wet. And yet. Weird flex to study "fatigue" while having zero clue about what the word even means. Even weird flex to give funding and resources to someone to do that. Medicine is seriously weird.