Radiation and chemotherapy can damage the heart, which can result in heart failure. Chemotherapies of some cancers, like breast cancer and lymphoma placement, have been associated with increased heart problems as well. Some of the causes include obesity, smoking, and inflammation.
As medical professionals devise novel methods for tackling cancer, an increasing number of patients endure the survival of cancer and consequently require medical assistance in battling heart complications.
The heart should be treated with as much regard as cancer because having a healthier heart is beneficial to cancer survivors. The blog “Higher Risk of Heart Failure Seen in Some Cancers” suggests that regular health check-ups, exercising, eating clean, and other easy yet effective lifestyle modifications can assist in heart recovery for cancer patients. Subsequently, ensuring the well-being of patients following cancer therapy is vital.
What Are The Risks? Let’s Understand
- Increased Incidence of Heart Failure in Cancer Survivors
A new study has revealed that women diagnosed with breast cancer or lymphoma have a greater chance of contracting heart failure than women who have never had any cancer. In comparison to people who have never had cancer, those with any advanced cancer have a 5-year data statistic suggesting that their risk of getting heart failure increases by 70%. Additionally, data over 20 years further depicts that from the previous group of cancer survivors, approximately 10% developed heart failure, whereas only 6% of the other group hadn’t.
According to the study, about 66% of the participants who survived cancer underwent treatment that included chemotherapy; approximately $% of those participants utilized anthracyclines that are known to damage the heart. Thus, even though cancer patients who struggle with heart issues can significantly benefit from these treatments, strong side effects at a later time can impact their heart health. Cancer patients must engage and promote a healthy lifestyle to safeguard their heart health and maintain their lives.
- Heart Failure Is More Common Among Cancer Survivors
Irrespective of age, cancer survivors are prone to cardiovascular ailments. For illustration, patients who have diabetes with a cancer diagnosis at the age of 80 have a threefold increased risk of heart conditions compared to a younger patient cohort, assuming other health determinants do not alter.
When compared to alternative treatment choices, the chemotherapy medication doxorubicin raises the risk of heart failure. According to the study, heart failure is more common among cancer survivors than in non-survivors. Because of this, even after therapy, these people need to have their heart health monitored as they age.
The Biological Mechanisms at Play
The correlation between cancer and heart failure (HF) relates to several factors and is not so simplistic. They are both inflammation-inducing conditions that occur as a response of the body to any insults or diseases, more so oxidative stress, which results from the abundance of free radicals in the system. sEVs, or small extracellular vesicles, are particles the heart could secrete in its failure, which may support tumor growth. So the cycle goes that heart failure aggravates the cancer and vice versa; having cancer imposes stress on the heart.
Moreover, cancer treatment medications such as chemotherapy and radiation bring about damage to the heart, which results in heart failure. Given these links, the heart care team and the oncologists should coordinate closely. This knowledge will foster the development of protocols for treating and managing patients with the respective conditions with better outcomes.
The Broader Context: Heart Failure as a Risk Factor for Cancer
Cancer and heart failure (HF) are both ailing conditions and can impact one another. Several reasons can increase the chances of being comorbid for both — having heart failure can increase the chances of developing cancer. For instance, almost 25.7% of patients living with heart failure develop cancer; in contrast, this prevalence is merely 16.2% in people without heart failure. This is wise because the two diseases have similar etiologies due to their shared risk factors, such as being overweight, having diabetes, having high blood pressure and high cholesterol levels, and having a sedentary lifestyle.
These standard features exacerbate the management of both cancer and heart failure patients.
Intervention from both oncologists and cardiologists becomes integral to a patient’s health. Furthermore, the complications of heart failure can worsen the arising issues of cancer, such as inflammation in the body. With time, as the mechanisms of heart failure and cancer become more apparent, it will be easy for specialists to devise effective treatment plans for patients with both conditions.
Implications for Patient Care
Cancer survivors need to keep an eye on their cardiology because their chances of getting heart disease as they grow older are exceedingly high. As per the statistics, the risk factor of heart disease among cancer survivors is 42% higher as compared to the people who are not cancer survivors. Their chances of developing heart failure are even higher by 52%.
Doctors should conduct regular heart check-ups to assess the patient’s heart health. Specific parameters like weight and blood pressure should be checked annually.
Another thing that can be done to avoid heart disease is avoiding health conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure and adopting healthy lifestyle choices like quitting smoking. These steps combined can significantly reduce the risk of heart disease.
Most importantly, though, cancer survivors need to be educated about their potential future health risks. By providing solutions to the previously identified problems, these survivors can better their situation and experience an improved quality of life.
Integrative Care Approaches
Integrative care models remain helpful to ensure that care for cancer survivors is holistic and more focused on survivorship issues, with the heart being one of them. This indicates that understating and fulfilling the needs of an oncologist goes hand in hand with caring for a cardiologist. For instance, the American Heart Association has set specific standards for the management of older women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. They state that it is mandatory to control heart health as, in some cases, it can be worse than the cancer itself.
Such actions would enable doctors to protect their patients from health risk factors such as high blood pressure & hypercholesterolemia, and other advanced concerning factors. Such cooperation benefits cancer patients, as they target not only cancer treatment but also maintain the functioning of patients’ hearts, which is crucial for their reasonable metabolic processes.
Conclusion
Treatment of cancer is crucial for prolonging survival. However, some forms may negatively impact the heart. This is critical as a fair number of patients now live longer post-diagnosis. Though they live longer, doctors are expected to help them maintain good heart health. In simpler terms, once the patient has survived cancer, there could still be some heart health problems lingering from the radiation or chemotherapy undergone. To elaborate on the point, these cancer treatments adversely affect the heart.
To treat such patients, physicians must understand the scope of treatment restrictions and the treatment risks, at which point they should begin treatment. This will also cover monitoring and treating high blood pressure and feeling for heartbeats. By monitoring such activities, medical professionals can help improve the health of cancer survivors by ensuring that they are properly looked after after completing their treatment.
So, while it is brilliant that more and more cancer patients are beating the disease, it is also essential that we help these patients stay fit in the other spectrums, too. Together, doctors and patients can focus on their heart health to ensure that they have a better life after dealing with the multitude of problems cancer has to offer.