Psychological impacts of human parvovirus B19 infection in breast cancer patients

Introduction The connection between human parvovirus B19 (B19V) infection and various illnesses has been established; however, its impact on cancer patients remains poorly understood. This study assesses the psychological and immunological impacts of B19V infection in breast cancer patients. Healthy controls (BH) and breast cancer patients before chemotherapy (BB) and after chemotherapy (BA) were recruited. Methods B19V antibodies and B19V DNA were evaluated for B19V infection. Socio-demographics, psychological status, and cytokine levels were evaluated using SAS 9.4 for all statistical analyses. Results The BA group displayed higher anxiety and depression scores on both the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) (p = 0.008) and the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ) (p = 0.001). Those positive for B19V-IgG among BA individuals showed higher PHQ sums (p = 0.028) and lower Fact-sums (p = 0.039). In BH, TNF-α levels were significantly lower in B19V IgG + subjects (p = 0.018). Overall, breast cancer patients (BB + BA) had higher PHQ scores; however, B19V infection was associated with lower PHQ scores (p = 0.0363 for B19V IgG). Conclusions The impact of B19V infection on cognitive function and depression prognosis in breast cancer patients suggests potential consequences.