Increased functional network segregation in glioma patients posttherapy: A neurological compensatory response or catastrophe for cognition?

Cross-disease research has highlighted the importance of functional networks in cognitive functioning. Given that these networks can be disrupted by glial tumors and their treatment, our study examines the relationship between cognitive performance and altered functional network topology using resting-state fMRI in a sizable prospective cohort of 50 glioma survivors and 50 matched healthy controls. With this study, we reveal significant alterations in functional network topology and its hubs in glioma survivors, of which specific graph measures appeared to be specifically valuable in predicting executive functioning and language outcomes. These insights underscore the importance of network-based approaches in future research to better understand and address these deficits, certainly given that functional networks and their hubs are understudied in this population.