Working with Chemo Brain

You’re back at work after cancer treatment — or maybe nearly done with treatment and working at least part-time. You’re understandably eager to get back to “normal.” But if you’ve had chemotherapy (or even if you haven’t), you may notice your concentration, memory or other work skills aren’t up to par. This mental fog isn't your imagination. It’s called “chemo brain.” Experts actually prefer the term “cognitive dysfunction associated with chemotherapy” or “post-chemo brain,” to more accurately describe it.

What Is Chemo Brain?

By whatever name, if you have it, you know it: memory lapses, difficulty remembering details or concentration, inability to multi-task like the master you once were, problems remembering names or spelling common words, inability to think as fast as you once did, or difficulty remembering the steps of tasks you once performed easily.

Up to 30% of cancer patients who receive chemotherapy may experience chemo brain, according to the American Cancer Society. Exactly how it occurs isn’t certain, but some experts suspect some chemo drugs may slip past the “blood brain” barrier, which separates chemicals that belong in the brain from those that do not, and adversely affect cognitive skills.

While experts say they have a lot to learn about chemo brain, they do agree that it’s a real condition, not your imagination. Research suggests it may linger after treatment. The treatment itself may impact nerve and brain function, and those effects may be complicated by the stress of coping with the diagnosis and the fatigue from dealing with the stress and an overloaded schedule. Some people may be more genetically vulnerable to chemo brain than others.

Although research about chemo brain is still evolving, there are many steps you can take at work to improve the “fog” and perform better.

Here, tips from the American Cancer Society, Mayo Clinic, and four experts:

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