Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) account for the majority of deaths worldwide. Radiation-induced heart diseases (RIHD) is one of the side effects following exposure to ionizing radiation (IR). Exposure could be from various forms such as diagnostic imaging, radiotherapy for cancer treatment, as well as nuclear disasters and nuclear accidents. RIHD is mostly observed after radiotherapy for thoracic malignancies, especially left breast cancer. RIHD may affect the supply of blood to heart muscles, leading to an increase in the risk of heart attacks to irradiated persons. Due to its dose-limiting consequence, RIHD has a negative effect on the therapeutic efficacy of radiotherapy. Several methods have been proposed for protection against RIHD. In this paper, we review the use of natural products, which have shown promising results for protection against RIHD.
Highlights
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading causes of mortality worldwide [1]
Studies have shown that the continuous production of free radicals through immune system-redox interactions has a major role in the late effects of exposure to radiation in heart tissue, which include inflammation and fibrosis [44]
We review the various natural products that have been investigated for protection against radiation-induced heart disease (RIHD)
Summary
Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) are the leading causes of mortality worldwide [1]. They include all heart and circulatory diseases such as heart attack, angina, coronary heart disease, stroke, congenital heart disease, hypertension, and vascular dementia. [7,8] These complications could arise in patients undergoing radiotherapy for various malignancies in the thoracic and mediastinal regions, such as lung cancer, a large portion has been observed in left breast cancer patients irradiated at the chest [9]. This is unsurprising considering the close proximity between the left breast and the heart. Years after the Hiroshima and Nagasaki as well as Chernobyl disasters, some survivors experienced symptoms of RIHD [20] These side effects negatively affect the supply of blood to heart muscles, leading to an increase in the risk of heart attacks to irradiated persons [16]. The need for effective management of these cardiac imaging techniques
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