Patients With a History of Cancer Have More Severe MIs

Patients With a History of Cancer Have More Severe MIs

  “We’ve watched cancer survivorship increase over the past 2.5 decades, which is wonderful, but it has led to new challenges, such as handling of downstream illnesses and side effects to an extent never encountered before,” said Dr. Herrmann. “In particular, as cardiologists, we wanted to know if cancer and its therapies left these patients debilitated from a cardiovascular disease standpoint.”

.....Patients with a history of cancer have a significantly higher risk of being hospitalised for heart failure during follow-up. But, with optimal medical treatment, there is no increased risk of dying from heart disease. These patients eventually die from their cancer disease, researchers found.
“This study supports the importance of cardiologists and oncologists working together to care for these patients,” said Dr. Herrmann. “Clearly, our goal is that the cancer patients of today do not become the cardiac patients of the future and, if they do, that we comprehensively see them through.”

SOURCE: Mayo Clinic