Anthracyclines News and Research

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Simple blood test offers early warning of chemotherapy-related cardiac dysfunction

Scientists have identified a collection of biomarkers that together signal that a person's cancer treatment may be harming their heart.

27 Apr 2020

Researchers identify protein that plays critical role in cancer treatment-related heart damage

Many cancers can be successfully treated, but treatment itself often comes with risks as well. Cancer therapy that uses anthracyclines--a class of commonly used chemotherapy drugs--has been associated with heart damage that can eventually result in heart failure. It is thought to be the reason why heart disease is a leading cause of death in cancer survivors, immediately following cancer recurrence.

9 Apr 2020

Statins may protect against heart damage caused by breast cancer therapies

Statins are widely used to lower cholesterol and prevent heart disease and related deaths, but can they also help guard against heart damage caused by certain breast cancer therapies?

19 Mar 2020

Pilot study highlights the effect of chemotherapy on male fertility

A pilot study conducted by INRS researchers highlights the effect of chemotherapy on male fertility before and after puberty.

22 Jan 2020

Obesity linked to increased risk of cardiotoxicity in chemotherapy-treated patients with breast cancer

Anthracyclines remain a cornerstone of breast cancer therapy in combination with new-generation targeted drugs such as trastuzumab. Both types of drugs are major culprits in chemotherapy-induced heart disease.

23 Dec 2019

Leukemia patients treated with common cancer drug have heightened risk of heart failure

Patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia or acute myeloid leukemia who are treated with anthracyclines are at a heightened risk of heart failure- most often within one year of exposure to the chemotherapy treatment, according to a new study led by researchers at Penn Medicine.

17 Dec 2019

Pacemaker-like device improves heart function in patients with chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy

With the advent of new therapies, cancer patients are surviving longer than ever before -- but the incidence of side-effect chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy (CHIC), or weakness of the heart muscle, is increasing.

13 Nov 2019

Cardiac resynchronization therapy improves heart function in cancer survivors

A pacemaker-like device restored heart function in a group of cancer survivors -- mostly women with breast cancer -- who had suffered from heart failure as a result of chemotherapy treatment, a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association reports.

12 Nov 2019

Childhood cancer survivors have higher risk of developing heart disease

Survivors of childhood cancer have a higher risk of developing a range of heart disease due to cancer therapy, according to new research published in the American Heart Association's journal Circulation.

26 Aug 2019

Key metabolic changes found in patients with chemotherapy-related heart toxicity

More and more patients are being treated successfully for cancer. However, some cancer treatments that are very effective for breast cancer – medications like anthracyclines and trastuzumab – can cause heart dysfunction and lead to heart failure.

19 Jul 2019

Chemotherapy can wreak havoc on the heart

Cheryl Krafft was diagnosed with an aggressive form of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and was put on a very high-powered chemotherapy regimen to rid her body of the cancer. What she was not counting on was the chemotherapy causing another equally deadly problem.

21 Jun 2019

Genetics may play a role in developing cancer therapy-induced cardiomyopathy

Recent advances in the development of cancer therapies have increased long-term survival and prognosis.

10 Apr 2019

Early marker of cardiac damage triggered by cancer treatment identified

Every year, 4 million new cases of cancer are diagnosed in Europe. Advances in cancer treatment sometimes come at the cost of major adverse effects, and one of the most prominent is cardiotoxicity. Myocardial toxicity affects as many as 25% of patients undergoing treatment with commonly used anticancer drugs.

19 Feb 2019

New study compares chemotherapy drugs with development of cardiomyopathy

In long-term survivors of childhood cancer, cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of early death from non-cancer causes.

1 Feb 2019

New discovery could pave way for improved leukemia treatment

Previous research has revealed that patients with acute myeloid leukemia who also have a particular mutation in a gene called NPM1 have a higher rate of remission with chemotherapy. About one-third of leukemia patients possess this favorable mutation, but until now, how it helps improve outcomes has remained unknown.

9 Aug 2018

Combating cardiac complications caused by cancer treatment

Amie Goins has completed eight 5K runs in 2018. An impressive feat for a 46-year-old mother with a full-time job and two teenage sons to care for – downright astounding for a woman who was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer two days before Christmas last year. She's conquered months of treatment and difficult side effects while continuing to lace up.

26 Jun 2018

Study tests accuracy of device designed to detect heart dysfunction in childhood cancer survivors

A wireless device designed for detection of heart dysfunction in childhood cancer survivors treated with anthracycline chemotherapy was accurate and displayed a low false-negative rate as compared to cardiac magnetic resonance imaging.

21 Jun 2018

Breast cancer patients may be at increased risk of cardiovascular diseases

Breast cancer patients may be at an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases including heart failure and may benefit from a treatment approach that weighs the benefits of specific therapies against potential damage to the heart, according to a new scientific statement from the American Heart Association published in its journal Circulation.

1 Feb 2018

Adults that survived childhood cancer are at risk of developing hypertension, study reveals

A new study, published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, indicates that adult survivors of childhood cancer were found to have a twofold increased risk of hypertension (high blood pressure) as adults, when compared with the general population.

24 Nov 2017

Childhood cancer survivors more likely to have high blood pressure as adults

People who survived childhood cancer were more than twice as likely as the general population to have high blood pressure (hypertension) as adults.

22 Nov 2017