New Cancer Diagnosis May Up Risk for CV Death, Morbidity

TUESDAY, March 15, 2022 (HealthDay News) -- New cancer diagnosis is associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular death and nonfatal morbidity, according to a study published in the March issue of JACC: CardioOncology.

D. Ian Paterson, M.D., from the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, and colleagues used data from administrative health care databases to examine the impact of a new cancer diagnosis on the risk for fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular events in a retrospective cohort study among 4,519,243 adults. Participants with new cancer diagnoses during April 2007 to December 2018 were compared to those without cancer with respect to risk for subsequent cardiovascular events.

The researchers identified 224,016 participants with new cancer diagnoses during a median follow-up period of 11.8 years, as well as 73,360 cardiovascular deaths and 470,481 nonfatal cardiovascular events. Compared with those without cancer, participants with cancer had hazard ratios of 1.33 (95 percent confidence interval, 1.29 to 1.37) for cardiovascular mortality, 1.01 (95 percent confidence interval, 0.97 to 1.05) for myocardial infarction, 1.44 (95 percent confidence interval, 1.41 to 1.47) for stroke, 1.62 (95 percent confidence interval, 1.59 to 1.65) for heart failure, and 3.43 (95 percent confidence interval, 3.37 to 3.50) for for pulmonary embolism, after adjustment. Patients with genitourinary, gastrointestinal, thoracic, nervous system, and hematologic malignancies had the highest cardiovascular risk.

"As the life expectancy of cancer patients increases, so does the likelihood of developing other illnesses after that diagnosis," Paterson said in a statement. "Our findings highlight the need for an even more collaborative approach to health care for cancer patients and survivors."

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