Prevalence and clinical risk factors of cardiovascular disease in patients with cancer: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of common cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) and their clinical risk factors among patients with cancer and to offer clinical evidence to help manage CVD within this population. METHODS: Patients with cancer who were aged ≥ 20 years were selected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2015-2020. The prevalence of CVD and its components was analyzed using weighted analysis to obtain standardized prevalence. Subgroup analyses for gender and age were also performed. Lastly, the clinical risk factors for CVD in patients with cancer were identified by conducting multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: A total of 1729 individuals diagnosed with cancer were included, among which 432 had CVD. Weighted analysis further revealed that 21.21% (95%CI: 17.55-24.86) of the patients with cancer had CVD. Moreover, CVD prevalence was 25.12% in males and 18.30% in females (P = 0.01), while it was 26.93% in the age group of ≥ 65 years and 14.58% in the < 65 years age group (P < 0.001). In terms of CVD components, angina pectoris was diagnosed in 4.51% of the patients, myocardial infarction in 8.56%, coronary heart disease in 10.09%, heart failure in 5.08%, and stroke in 7.57%. Multivariable logistic regression analysis indicated that older age (OR = 1.02, 95% CI: 1.01-1.03), smoking history (OR = 1.56, 95% CI: 1.02-2.39 for former smoking and OR = 2.82, 95% CI: 1.59-5.01 for current smoking), hypertension (OR = 2.78, 95% CI: 1.81-4.28), diabetes (OR = 2.04, 95% CI: 1.47-2.84), chronic kidney disease (CKD, OR = 1.73, 95% CI: 1.28-2.34), and antineoplastic or other treatments (OR = 4.83, 95% CI: 2.15-10.85) were statistically significant independent risk factors for CVD in patients with cancer. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with cancer have a weighted CVD prevalence of 21.21%, with male patients and those ≥ 65 years demonstrating a higher prevalence of CVD. Independent clinical risk factors for CVD in patients with cancer comprise age, smoking history, hypertension, diabetes, CKD, and antineoplastic or other treatments.