Black Patients More Likely to Have Heart Damage Following Chemo

TUESDAY, April 18, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Black patients have 71 percent higher odds of cardiotoxicity following cancer treatment versus White patients, according to research presented at the Advancing the Cardiovascular Care of the Oncology Patient conference organized by the American College of Cardiology and held both virtually and in Washington, D.C., from April 14 to 16.

Wondewossen Gebeyehu, from the University of Toronto, and colleagues conducted a systematic literature review to identify studies reporting on cardiovascular toxicity in cancer patients of different racial/ethnic backgrounds receiving chemotherapy.

Based on 24 included studies (683,749 participants), the researchers found that Black race or African ancestry was associated with higher odds of chemotherapy-associated cardiotoxicity (unadjusted odds ratio, 1.71). Similarly, Black race or African ancestry was associated with higher odds of congestive heart failure diagnosis (unadjusted odds ratio, 1.92).

"The most important message for patients is that they should not avoid chemotherapy, as the most important thing is making sure they get the best cancer treatment possible, and studies already show Black patients may get less optimal cancer treatments," Gebeyehu said in a statement. "Understanding these disparities will hopefully lead to clinicians having more conversations around reducing cardiovascular risk associated with chemotherapy and targeted efforts to cater to groups at higher risk."

Press Release

More Information