Chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy hits men harder than women
A small study examining how chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy found that men experienced greater side effects, including significantly lower left and right ventricular ejection.
The researchers identified 76 patients (45 women and 31 men) over a six-year period that received potentially cardiotoxic chemotherapy and were found to have impaired left ventricular function (chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy). The research was presented at May 25 at EuroCMR 2017 in Prague.
“Cancer patients are living longer because of improved treatment but the side effects of treatment include cardiovascular morbidity and mortality,” said lead author Iwan Harries, MD, a cardiology specialist registrar at Bristol Heart Institute and PhD candidate at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom.
The study collected details about the type and dose of chemotherapy and the interval between receiving treatment and having a cardiac magnetic resonance scan. In addition to men having, on average, lower ventricular ejection, they also had larger volumes and mass, indicative of greater damage to the heart’s structure.
“The results of our study suggest that men developed a more severe form of chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy than women at follow-up of 8.75 years,” Harries said. “Patients receiving anthracycline received on average 240 mg/m2 of doxorubicin or equivalent, a dose which was similar in both men and women.”
Researchers encouraged further examination of the impact of gender in cardio-oncology, including the possibility of personalizing treatments to minimize the side effects of chemotherapy in men.
Nicholas joined TriMed in 2016 as the managing editor of the Chicago office. After receiving his master’s from Roosevelt University, he worked in various writing/editing roles for magazines ranging in topic from billiards to metallurgy. Currently on Chicago’s north side, Nicholas keeps busy by running, reading and talking to his two cats.