Key result
Anthracycline exposure links higher mitochondrial ferritin levels to lower LVEF in cancer patients.
Why the study?
The effects of anthracyclines on mitochondrial ferritin expression and its association with subclinical cardiotoxicity in humans were not well characterized.
Does anthracycline exposure affect mitochondrial ferritin (MtFt) expression in murine cardiomyocytes and cancer patients?
Cohort (n=26)
Does anthracycline exposure affect mitochondrial ferritin (MtFt) expression in murine cardiomyocytes and cancer patients?
Anthracycline exposure increases mitochondrial ferritin expression in murine cardiomyocytes, and in cancer patients, MtFt levels show a weak inverse association with LVEF at the end of treatment.
MtFt-LVEF association in anthracycline recipients should not yet change practice; hypothesis-generating for mitochondrial ferritin as cardiotoxicity biomarker.
This study investigated the effects of anthracyclines on mitochondrial ferritin (MtFt) expression in primary murine cardiomyocytes and in cancer patients. MtFt expression was first evaluated in murine cardiomyocytes before and after doxorubicin exposure. Subsequently, MtFt levels were assessed in peripheral blood cells of 26 cancer patients at baseline, at the end of treatment, and 12 months after the first cycle, together with high-sensitivity troponin T (hsTnT), N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP), and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). Doxorubicin-treated murine cardiomyocytes exhibited increased MtFt expression compared with untreated cells. No patient developed clinically relevant cardiotoxicity. A weak but significant inverse association was observed between MtFt levels and LVEF at the end of treatment. Multivariable linear regression showed no significant predictive effect of hsTnT, NT-proBNP, or time on MtFt changes, although MtFt levels tended to decrease and hsTnT levels to increase over time.
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Pinto et al. (2026) conducted a cohort in Cancer (n=26). Anthracyclines vs. Baseline was evaluated on Mitochondrial ferritin (MtFt) expression and its association with LVEF. Anthracycline exposure in cancer patients demonstrated a weak but significant inverse association between mitochondrial ferritin levels and left ventricular ejection fraction at the end of treatment.
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