Morphological Plaque Characteristics and Clinical Outcomes in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome and a Cancer History

Navigating cancer therapy induced cardiotoxicity: From pathophysiology to treatment innovations

Every year, more than a million people in the United States undergo chemotherapy or radiation therapy for cancer, as estimated by the CDC. While chemotherapy has been an instrumental tool for treating cancer, it also causes severe adverse effects. The more commonly acknowledged adverse effects include hair loss, fatigue, and nausea, but a more severe and longer lasting side effect is cardiotoxicity. Cardiotoxicity, or heart damage, is a common complication of cancer treatments. It can range from mild to severe, and it can affect some patients temporarily or others permanently, even after they are cured of cancer. Dexrazoxane is the only FDA-approved drug for treating anthracycline induced cardiotoxicity, but it also has drawbacks and adverse effects. There is no other type of chemotherapy induced cardiotoxicity that has an approved treatment option. In this review, we discuss the pathophysiology of chemotherapeutic-induced cardiotoxicity, methods and guidelines of diagnosis, methods of treatment and mitigation, and current drug delivery approaches in therapeutic development.

Pancoronary plaque characteristics and clinical outcomes in acute coronary syndrome patients with cancer history

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

The prevalence of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients with cancer history is increasing and it is associated with higher mortality. However, there is limited evidence on the characteristics of coronary plaque in ACS patients with cancer history. This study explored the pancoronary plaque characteristics in ACS patients with cancer history by optical coherence tomography (OCT).

METHODS

A total of 306 ACS patients treated by 3-vessel OCT at the time of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were included, retrospectively. Patients were divided into two groups according to the presence or absence of cancer history: one group with cancer history (n = 98) and a matched group without cancer history (n = 208).

RESULTS

A total of 314 culprit lesions and 514 nonculprit lesions were identified by OCT in this study. In culprit lesions, ACS patients with cancer history had higher incidence of thin cap fibroatheroma (TCFA) (p = 0.016), cholesterol crystals (p = 0.028), calcification (p = 0.001) and thrombus (p = 0.001), and had thinner fibrous cap thickness (FCT) (p = 0.011), greater maximum lipid arc (p = 0.042) and lipid index (p < 0.001), compared to matched ACS patients without cancer history. In nonculprit lesions, ACS patients with cancer history had higher prevalence of high-risk plaque (14.7% vs. 7.7%, p = 0.017), nonculprit rupture (14.7% vs. 6.3%, p = 0.003), and TCFA (52.2% vs. 28.3%, p < 0.001), and had higher incidence of calcification (p = 0.003), thrombus (p = 0.029), cholesterol crystals (p = 0.002) and microchannels (p = 0.029). These non-culprit lesions had longer lesion length (p = 0.001), thinner FCT (p < 0.001), greater maximum lipid arc (p = 0.016) and lipid index (p < 0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

ACS patients with cancer history showed more high-risk plaque features in culprit and nonculprit lesions, compared with ACS patients without cancer history. Therefore, ACS patients with cancer history may have greater pancoronary vulnerability. This may predict a poorer prognosis for ACS patients with cancer history.

Cardiac Interventions in Patients With Active, Advanced Solid and Hematologic Malignancies: JACC: CardioOncology State-of-the-Art Review

Invasive cardiac interventions are recommended to treat ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes, multivessel coronary disease, severe symptomatic aortic stenosis, and cardiomyopathy. These recommendations are based on randomized controlled trials that historically included few individuals with active, advanced malignancies. Advanced malignancies represent a significant competing risk for mortality, and there is limited evidence to inform the risks and benefits of invasive cardiac interventions in affected patients. We review the benefit conferred by invasive cardiac interventions; the periprocedural considerations; the contemporary survival expectations of patients across several types of active, advanced malignancy; and the literature on cardiovascular interventions in these populations. Our objective is to develop a rational framework to guide clinical recommendations on the use of invasive cardiac interventions in patients with active, advanced cancer.

Plaque Rupture in a Hodgkin Lymphoma Survivor without Cardiovascular Risk Factors 20 Years after Thoracic Radiotherapy: A Case Report

BACKGROUND

Major improvements in cancer therapies have significantly contributed to increased survival rates of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) survivors, outweighing cardiovascular side effects and the risks of radiation-induced heart disease. Non-invasive screening for coronary artery disease (CAD) starting five years after irradiation is recommended, as plaque development and morphology may differ in this high-risk population. Due to rapid plaque progression and a possibly higher incidence of non-calcified plaques, coronary artery calcium scoring may not be sufficient as a screening modality in HL survivors treated with thoracic radiotherapy.

CASE SUMMARY

A 42-year-old man with a history of HL treated with thoracic radiotherapy presented at the emergency department 20 years after cancer treatment with an ST-elevation myocardial infarction, in the absence of cardiovascular risk factors, for which primary percutaneous coronary intervention of the left anterior descending artery was performed. Four months prior to acute myocardial infarction, invasive coronary angiography only showed wall irregularities. Two years earlier, the Agatston calcium score was zero.

DISCUSSION

In HL survivors treated with thoracic radiotherapy, a calcium score of zero may not give the same warranty period for cardiac event-free survival compared to the general population. Coronary computed tomography angiography can be a proper diagnostic tool to detect CAD at an early stage after mediastinal irradiation, as performing calcium scoring may not be sufficient in this population to detect non-calcified plaques, which may show rapid progression and lead to acute coronary syndrome. Also, intensive lipid-lowering therapy should be considered in the presence of atherosclerosis in this patient population.

Radiation Treatment Mechanisms of Cardiotoxicity: A Systematic Review

Radiotherapy may be used alone or in combination with chemotherapy for cancer treatment. There are many mechanisms of radiation treatment exposure to toxicities. Our aim was to summarize the literature about known mechanisms of radiation-induced cardiac toxicities. We performed a systematic review of the literature on the PubMed database until October 2022 about cardiovascular toxicities and radiation therapy exposure. Only systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and reviews were selected. Out of 1429 publications screened, 43 papers met inclusion criteria and were selected for the umbrella review process. Microvascular and macrovascular complications could lead to adverse cardiac effects. Many radiotherapy-associated risk factors were responsible, such as the site of radiation treatment, beam proximity to heart tissues, total dosage, the number of radiotherapy sessions, adjuvant chemotherapeutic agents used, and patient traditional cardiovascular risk factors, patient age, and gender. Moreover, important dosage cutoff values could increase the incidence of cardiac toxicities. Finally, the time from radiation exposure to cardiac side effects was assessed. Our report highlighted mechanisms, radiation dosage values, and the timeline of cardiovascular toxicities after radiation therapy. All of the above may be used for the assessment of cardiovascular risk factors and the development of screening programs for cancer patients.

Coronary blood flow in heart failure: cause, consequence and bystander

Heart failure is a clinical syndrome where cardiac output is not sufficient to sustain adequate perfusion and normal bodily functions, initially during exercise and in more severe forms also at rest. The two most frequent forms are heart failure of ischemic origin and of non-ischemic origin. In heart failure of ischemic origin, reduced coronary blood flow is causal to cardiac contractile dysfunction, and this is true for stunned and hibernating myocardium, coronary microembolization, myocardial infarction and post-infarct remodeling, possibly also for the takotsubo syndrome. The most frequent form of non-ischemic heart failure is dilated cardiomyopathy, caused by genetic mutations, myocarditis, toxic agents or sustained tachyarrhythmias, where alterations in coronary blood flow result from and contribute to cardiac contractile dysfunction. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is caused by genetic mutations but can also result from increased pressure and volume overload (hypertension, valve disease). Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction is characterized by pronounced coronary microvascular dysfunction, the causal contribution of which is however not clear. The present review characterizes the alterations of coronary blood flow which are causes or consequences of heart failure in its different manifestations. Apart from any potentially accompanying coronary atherosclerosis, all heart failure entities share common features of impaired coronary blood flow, but to a different extent: enhanced extravascular compression, impaired nitric oxide-mediated, endothelium-dependent vasodilation and enhanced vasoconstriction to mediators of neurohumoral activation. Impaired coronary blood flow contributes to the progression of heart failure and is thus a valid target for established and novel treatment regimens.

Coronary plaque and clinical characteristics of South Asian (Indian) patients with acute coronary syndromes: An optical coherence tomography study

BACKGROUND

South Asians, and Indians in particular, are known to have a higher incidence of premature atherosclerosis and acute coronary syndromes (ACS) with worse clinical outcomes, compared to populations with different ethnic backgrounds. However, the underlying pathobiology accounting for these differences has not been fully elucidated.

METHODS

ACS patients who had culprit lesion optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging were enrolled. Culprit plaque characteristics were evaluated using OCT.

RESULTS

Among 1315 patients, 100 were South Asian, 1009 were East Asian, and 206 were White. South Asian patients were younger (South Asians vs. East Asians vs. Whites: 51.6 ± 13.4 vs. 65.4 ± 11.9 vs. 62.7 ± 11.7; p < 0.001) and more frequently presented with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) (77.0% vs. 56.4% vs. 35.4%; p < 0.001). On OCT analysis after propensity group matching, plaque erosion was more frequent (57.0% vs. 38.0% vs. 50.0%; p = 0.003), the lipid index was significantly greater (2281.6 [1570.8-3160.6] vs. 1624.3 [940.9-2352.4] vs. 1303.8 [1090.0-1757.7]; p < 0.001), and the prevalence of layered plaque was significantly higher in the South Asian group than in the other two groups (52.0% vs. 30.0% vs. 34.0%; p = 0.003).

CONCLUSIONS

Compared to East Asians and Whites, South Asians with ACS were younger and more frequently presented with STEMI. Plaque erosion was the predominant pathology for ACS in South Asians and their culprit lesions had more features of plaque vulnerability.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

http://www.clinicaltrials.gov, NCT03479723.