Therapeutic Yoga Enhances Neuroplasticity and Metabolic Regulation Through Elevated Plasma Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor (BDNF) and Ghrelin in a Heterogeneous Cancer Survivor Population

Background: Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) frequently arises as a consequence of cancer treatments, manifesting in challenges such as impaired memory, attention, processing speed, and word finding. These cognitive deficits ranging from mild to moderate, can persist for months or even years. They can negatively impact a survivor’s quality of life (QOL), mental health, and interpersonal relationships. Moreover, cancer and its therapies adversely affect various metabolic processes in the body influencing factors such as weight changes, fat metabolism, energy regulation, dyslipidemia, growth hormone regulation, and cardiovascular health. A secondary analysis was conducted to investigate whether a 16-week therapeutic yoga program (TYP) modulates the cognitive and metabolic biomarkers profile in plasma among heterogeneous cancer survivors. Approach: Participants included in the study were adults aged 18 years and older with a clinical cancer diagnosis. Informed consent was obtained from all participants. Nineteen participants completed 3 weekly 75-minute sessions of TYP combined with love and kindness meditation. Blood samples were collected from 16 participants both before and after the TYP intervention. Eight neurological, metabolic, and inflammatory biomarkers (β-NGF, BDNF, Ghrelin, IL12P70, Leptin, MCP-1, TNF-β, VEGF-A) were measured by a U-Plex Custom Metabolic Group1 (hu) Multiplex Assay on the MESO Quickplex SQ 120MM, Model 1300. Data was analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Results: The participants had a mean age of 59.6 years (±7.3). Over half of the cohort (56%) were classified as overweight or obese (BMI ≥ 25 kg/m²). The majority were female (71%) and breast cancer survivors (65%), with 44% of these survivors being of Hispanic ethnicity. Statistically significant increases were observed in the concentrations of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF; pre: 653.50 vs post: 1234.17 pg/ml; 88.85% increase, P = .005) and ghrelin (pre: 576.10 vs post: 710.80 pg/ml; 23.38% increase, P = .04). Notably, a marked difference was found in vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A), which increased by 45.51% post-TYP, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) decreased by 19.79% post-TYP. Conclusion: TYP contributed to substantial improvements in plasma levels of BDNF and ghrelin in this heterogeneous cohort of cancer survivors. Future research involving larger cohorts is needed to validate these findings.