JennTex Starting the discussion by asking Dr Oliveira a few questions but you to chime in with your questions and he 'll answer them #cancerandheart

Question
JennTex Hi Dr Oliveira So what is the role of cardiac care in cancer treatment? #cancerandheart

Answer
@JennTex Crucial. Cancer and heart disease are related in many different ways. #cancerandheart

Question
KatherineHobson #cancerandheart are pediatric patients at biggest risk of late heart effects?

Answer
@KatherineHobson Yes, Katherine, children are at a higher risk for late cardiac effects. Why that is, we don't yet know. #cancerandheart

@KatherineHobson most of the side effects are related to the type of chemo and dose that they receive. same thing with radiation. #cancerandheart

Comment
DrAnasYounes @KatherineHobson It is more common in young HL patients who received wide field radiation that overalps with the heart.. #cancerandheart

Comment from Dr Oliviera
@DrAnasYounes That's accurate, and the higher percentages are from older studies when radiation doses and fields were larger #cancerandheart


Question
JennTex How are these cardiac issues in cancer patients diagnosed or discovered? #cancerandheart

Answer
@JennTexThe first thing is to be aware of them. So patients should be on the look-out for cardiac symptoms such as #cancerandheart

@JennTex chest pain, shortness of breath, leg swelling, etc. And always ask your doctor about possible side effects #cancerandheart


Question
JennTex Do all cancer treatments cause/contribute to cardiac problems? Which is the "safest"? #cancerandheart

Answer
@jenntex not all treatments cause problems. Certain chemotherapy drugs are especially dangerous. #cancerandheart

Question
JennTex Does that mean that heart disease rules out some treatment regimens for patients? #cancerandheart

Answer
CancerWise We typically look at how strong your heart is before selecting a treatment type. An echo gives us an EF number #cancerandheart


Question
Brianne_Grace @CancerWise What kinds of cardiac issues are most prevalent in cancer patients? #cancerandheart

Answer
@Brianne_Grace there are two types those pre-existing such as heart attacks and high BP & those caused specifically by cancer treatment #cancerandheart


Question
KatherineHobson #cancerandheart do we know how many people survive cancer but die later due to treatment-related late effects?

Answer
@KatherineHobson yes and no. we know how many people die of general treatment related problems, but not specific to heart #cancerandheart


Retweet
matthewherper RT @KatherineHobson: #cancerandheart do we know how many people survive cancer but die later due to treatment-related late effects?


Question
What questions should a cancer patient be asking their doctor about heart health? #cancerandheart

Answer
@DeThomasMDA The most important thing is to know whether your heart is strong enough for the proposed treatment plan #cancerandheart


Question
Brianne_Grace @CancerWise How are cardiac issues in cancer patients diagnosed/discovered? #cancerandheart

Answer
@Brianne_Grace CancerWise about 2-20% of childhood cancer survivors treated for lymphoma develop heart failure in their 20's and 30's #cancerandheart

Comment
@JennTex Thanks for agreeing to stay around for a few more minutes I know that you have to head to clinic soon. Any more questions? #cancerandheart

Comment
CancerWise @JennTex I'll stay until I get paged... #cancerandheart

Question
JennTex Can you talk about what research might be going on here at MD Anderson around this subject #cancerandheart

Answer
@JennTex There is intense research, at the clinical and basic level to try to discover the causes of heart failure in cancer #cancerandheart

we work in patients and lab animals focusing on individual genetic predisposition #cancerandheart

Comment
afinley @CancerWise radiotherapy has significantly improved over the years

Comment
shamsha excellent discussion going on here about cardiac effects of cancer tx: #cancerandheart via @CancerWise.

Comment
JennTex Thank you so much Dr Oliveira this has been a great discussion #cancerandheart

Comment
@JennTex You're welcome. #cancerandheart

Comment
If you have any further questions /comments or would like to continue the discussion http://bit.ly/ddAOV8 (expand) #cancerandheart

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Cancer and Heart Health Resources

Dealing with Treatment: Heart Health

Oncolog: Protecting the Heart


Audio and Video Resources

Cancer Newsline: Cardiac Care for Cancer Patients

Patient Power: Cancer and Heart Disease with Elie Mouhayar, M.D.


Cancer and Heart Health Research

Growth Factor Hit By Cancer Drugs Also Protects the Heart (2010)

Study Finds Heart Failure is Rare Among Leukemia Patients on Imatinib (2007)

Study Finds Cardiac Toxicity Rates High with Herceptin Use Can be Reversed (2006)

Study Concludes Risk of Cardiac Death After Radiation Treatment for Breast Cancer Has Dramatically Decreased (2005)

Researchers Confirm Vioxx Nearly Doubled Cardiovascular Risks in Cancer Prevention Study (2005)