The incidence of cardiomyopathy in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers after anthracycline-based adjuvant chemotherapy.

Abstract

e13033Background: Anthracyclines, commonly used drugs for the treatment of breast cancer, are associated with a risk of cardiotoxicity, manifesting in varying severity from an asymptomatic decline in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) to overt congestive heart failure (CHF). Recent murine model studies demonstrated that BRCA2 deficiency increases the risk of anthracycline induced cardiac failure andBRCA1 deficiency may lead to increased rates of heart failure and cardiac death following an ischemic cardiac event. Methods: We conducted a retrospective case-control study to compare the incidence of anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity in germline BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation carriers, with a BRCA1 and BRCA2 wild-type, age matched population with similar baseline characteristics. The primary endpoint was the development of cardiomyopathy defined as either CHF or decline in LVEF. Results: We identified 102 BRCA mutation carriers with breast cancerfrom the Hereditary Breast Cancer Risk Program at Baylor Univ...