Atrial fibrillation is associated with increased in-hospitality mortality during Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell therapy hospitalizations: a retrospective cohort study in the United States.

Background: Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy (CAR-T) has emerged as a promising treatment for specific hematological malignancies. While some studies suggest an association between CAR-T and atrial fibrillation (AF), more data are needed on the association of AF with CAR-T outcomes.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study utilized the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) 2017-2020 to explore in-hospital outcomes in cancer patients with AF while undergoing CAR-T.

Atrial fibrillation or flutter in patients undergoing stem cell transplantation, in-hospital and post-discharge outcomes in a large nationwide sample across the United States.

Background: Stem Cell Transplantation (SCT) is a cornerstone therapy in managing several malignant and benign hematological conditions. Atrial fibrillation/atrial flutter (AF) are commonly encountered in patients receiving SCT. There is a paucity of large-scale data on the prevalence of AF and their effect on outcomes following SCT.

Trends of all-cause, melanoma-specific, and cardiovascular mortality in melanoma patients from 2005 to 2020.

Background: Recent advances in melanoma treatment, including immunotherapy and targeted therapy, have significantly improved survival among melanoma patients after 2010. However, these changes may have influenced mortality trends, including those related to cardiovascular (CV) events.

Objective: In this study, we assess mortality trends including CV mortality in melanoma patients.

Trend of cardiovascular mortality among metastatic renal cell cancer patients in the US from 2005 to 2020.

Recent advances in treating advanced renal cell carcinoma (RCC) with distant metastasis have significantly enhanced cancer-specific outcomes. However, these patients are at increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and events. This study aims to investigate the trend of incidence-based mortality specific to CVD in patients with metastatic RCC.

Myocardial Inflammation in Cardiac Transthyretin Amyloidosis: Prevalence and Potential Prognostic Implications.

Background: Despite previous histopathologic evidence for its presence, the role of myocardial inflammation in the development and progression of cardiac transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR-CA) remains insufficiently understood. Thus, this study sought to characterize the prevalence and potential prognostic implications of myocardial inflammation in ATTR-CA.

Methods: A retrospective observational study including patients with ATTR-CA diagnosed by endomyocardial biopsy was conducted.

Cardiac Complications of Radiation Therapy.

Radiation therapy is a critical component in managing many malignancies by improving local control and survival. The benefits of radiation may come at the expense of unintended radiation injury to the surrounding normal tissues, with the heart being one of the most affected organs in thoracic radiation treatments. As cancer survivors live longer, radiation-induced cardiotoxicity (RICT) is now increasingly recognized.

Coronary artery calcium on lung cancer radiation planning CT aids cardiovascular risk assessment.

Background: Patients with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) undergoing thoracic radiation are at high cardiovascular risk. Semiquantitative assessment of coronary artery calcification (CAC) on baseline planning non-gated chest computed tomography (CT) scans may help further risk stratify patients.

Objectives: This study aimed to characterize the association between CAC and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE; myocardial infarction or stroke) and assess the utility of semiquantitative assessment of CAC.

Plasma Ceramide C24:0/C16:0 Ratio is Associated with Improved Survival in Patients with Pancreatic Ductal Adenocarcinoma.

Background: Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has a high fatality rate, with surgery as the only curative treatment. Identification of new biomarkers related to survival may help guide discovery of new pathophysiologic pathways and potential therapeutic targets. As long-chain ceramides have been linked to tumor proliferation, we sought to determine if ceramide levels were prognostic in PDAC.

Identification Drug Targets for Oxaliplatin-Induced Cardiotoxicity without Affecting Cancer Treatment through Inter Variability Cross-Correlation Analysis (IVCCA).

The successful treatment of side effects of chemotherapy faces two major limitations: the need to avoid interfering with pathways essential for the cancer-destroying effects of the chemotherapy drug, and the need to avoid helping tumor progression through cancer promoting cellular pathways. To address these questions and identify new pathways and targets that satisfy these limitations, we have developed the bioinformatics tool Inter Variability Cross-Correlation Analysis (IVCCA). This tool calculates the cross-correlation of differentially expressed genes, analyzes their clusters, and compares them across a vast number of known pathways to identify the most relevant target(s).

Advances in Screening for Radiation-Associated Cardiotoxicity in Cancer Patients.

Purpose Of Review: Radiation is foundational to the treatment of cancer and improves overall survival. Yet, it is important to recognize the potential cardiovascular effects of radiation therapy and how to best minimize or manage them. Screening-both through imaging and with biomarkers-can potentially identify cardiovascular effects early, allowing for prompt initiation of treatment to mitigate late effects.

Adding Pharmacist-Led Home Blood Pressure Telemonitoring to Usual Care for Blood Pressure Control: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Health systems have been quickly adopting telemedicine throughout the United States, especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there are limited data on whether adding pharmacist-led home blood pressure (BP) telemonitoring to office-based usual care improves BP. We searched PubMed/MEDLINE and Embase for randomized controlled trials from January 2000 until April 2022, comparing studies on pharmacist-led home BP telemonitoring with usual care.

Oxaliplatin-induced cardiotoxicity in mice is connected to the changes in energy metabolism in the heart tissue.

Oxaliplatin is a platinum-based alkylating chemotherapeutic agent used for cancer treatment. At high cumulative dosage, the negative effect of oxaliplatin on the heart becomes evident and is linked to a growing number of clinical reports. The aim of this study was to determine how chronic oxaliplatin treatment causes the changes in energy-related metabolic activity in the heart that leads to cardiotoxicity and heart damage in mice.

Clinicopathological classification of immune checkpoint inhibitor-associated myocarditis: possible refinement by measuring macrophage abundance.

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) myocarditis is associated with high morbidity and mortality. While endomyocardial biopsy (EMB) is considered a gold standard for diagnosis, the sensitivity of EMB is not well defined. Additionally, the pathological features that correlate with the clinical diagnosis of ICI-associated myocarditis remain incompletely understood.

Recent Advances in Serum Biomarkers for Risk Stratification and Patient Management in Cardio-Oncology.

Purpose Of Review: Following significant advancements in cancer therapeutics and survival, the risk of cancer therapy-related cardiotoxicity (CTRC) is increasingly recognized. With ongoing efforts to reduce cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in cancer patients and survivors, cardiac biomarkers have been studied for both risk stratification and monitoring during and after therapy to detect subclinical disease. This article will review the utility for biomarker use throughout the cancer care continuum.

Sex-based disparities and in-hospital outcomes of patients hospitalized with atrial fibrillation with and without dementia.

Study Objective: We sought to evaluate the sex-based disparities and comparative in-hospital outcomes of principal AF hospitalizations in patients with and without dementia, which have not been well-studied.

Design: This is a non-interventional retrospective cohort study.

Setting And Participants: We identified principal hospitalizations of AF in the National Inpatient Sample in adults (≥18 years old) between January 2016 and December 2019.

In-hospital mortality of heparin-induced thrombocytopenia in end-stage kidney disease. A retrospective national population-based cohort study.

Aim: Heparin induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) and end stage kidney disease (ESKD) are independent conditions associated with increased mortality and morbidity, however, whether ESKD is an independent risk factor for increased mortality in HIT admissions is not well studied. Therefore, we aimed to compare in-hospital mortality in HIT admissions based on their ESKD status.

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study of HIT hospitalizations aged 18 and older using the 2016-2019 national inpatient sample (NIS) database.