Female sex not linked to HF after treatment with anthracyclines
Researchers found no association between female sex and HF in adult patients treated with anthracyclines for non-hormone-dependent tumors, according to a presentation from the American Heart Association Scientific Sessions.
“Female sex is frequently cited as a risk factor for anthracycline-cardiotoxicity based on pediatric data, yet the role of sex on the development of cardiotoxicity has not been clearly established in adults,” Gabriel Pajares Hurtado, MD, from the department of internal medicine at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said during a presentation. “More recently, preclinical studies have suggested that female sex might actually be protective against anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity.”
Researchers conducted a retrospective cohort study of 871 adult patients (44% women) with no prior history of HF who received anthracyclines for non-hormone-dependent lymphoma, leukemia and sarcoma. They examined presence or absence of HF within 5 years of starting anthracyclines and determined ORs based on self-reported sex and other covariates using logistic regression models adjusted for age.
Age, total cumulative anthracycline dose and prevalence of CV comorbidities were similar in women and in men at baseline.
The results showed that heart failure risk increased with age (OR = 1.02; 95% CI, 1.01-1.03; P = .001). Based on the results of the age-adjusted model, Pajares Hurtado reported no association between female sex and subsequent HF (OR = 1.03; 95% CI, 0.72-1.47; P = .88), including after stratification by age older or younger than 50 years (as a surrogate for menopausal status).
“In this large, single-center retrospective cohort study, female sex was not associated with heart failure in adult patients treated with anthracyclines for non-hormone-dependent tumors,” Pajares Hurtado said. “These findings diverge from prior reports suggesting an increased risk of cardiotoxicity in women.”
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Pajares Hurtado G, et al. P413. Presented at: American Heart Association Scientific Sessions; Nov. 13-15, 2021 (virtual meeting).
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