Cardiovascular complications of mantle field radiation: a case series

BACKGROUND: Mantle field radiotherapy has been known to cause cardiovascular complications even years after therapy. Complications include pericardial disease, coronary artery disease, and conduction abnormalities. CASE SUMMARY: We present a case series of two patients who developed cardiovascular complications years after receiving mantle radiation. Patient 1 is a 52-year-old man who presented with symptoms of heart failure. He had a neurostimulator which precluded him from cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. Haemodynamic findings on right heart catheterization raised suspicion for constrictive pericarditis and pericardiectomy was performed. Histopathological analysis reported dense, sclerotic fibrous tissue consistent with radiation-related changes. Patient 2 is a 37-year-old man with a 2-month history of chest pain and exertional dyspnoea who was admitted for management of coronary artery disease. Coronary angiography demonstrated bilateral subclavian artery stenosis and an elevated left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (50 mmHg). He had bilateral percutaneous subclavian artery stenting. Both patients had complete resolution of symptoms on follow-up. DISCUSSION: Our case series emphasizes the need for an index of suspicion for radiation-related cardiovascular changes in patients who have a history of mantle radiation, especially in younger patients. This was especially pertinent in the case of our first patient who presented a diagnostic challenge due to certain patient factors. Our second patient is a case of subclavian artery stenosis which is less frequently reported as a complication of mantle radiation in the literature.