Radiation exposure resulting in doses >45 Gy is associated with a 50% increased risk of major adverse cardiovascular events compared to lower doses.
Does radiation therapy increase the risk of developing arrhythmias in patients with chest malignancies?
Radiation therapy for chest malignancies is associated with a 2-11% incidence of arrhythmias developing years later, highlighting the need for long-term screening, particularly in patients receiving >30 Gy.
Effect estimate: HR 1.50 (95% CI null)
p-value: p=0.027
Radiation-associated cardiovascular disease, an increasingly recognised disease process, is a significant adverse effect of radiation therapy for common malignancies that involve the chest, and include lymphomas, lung, mediastinal and breast cancers. Two factors contribute to the increasing incidence of radiation-associated cardiovascular disease: advances in malignancy detection and the improved survival of cancer patients, by which many symptoms of radiation-associated cardiovascular disease, specifically radiation-associated arrhythmias, present years and/or decades following initial radiotherapy. We present a focused overview of the currently understood pathophysiology, prevalence and management strategies of radiation-associated arrhythmias, which include bradyarrhythmias, tachyarrhythmias and autonomic dysfunction.
Bedi et al. (Fri,) conducted a review in Radiation-associated cardiovascular disease. Radiotherapy was evaluated on Major adverse cardiovascular events (HR 1.50, 95% CI null, p=0.027). Radiation exposure resulting in doses >45 Gy is associated with a 50% increased risk of major adverse cardiovascular events compared to lower doses.