Is bevacizumab cardiotoxicity?

Table of Contents

Background/Aim: Bevacizumab combined with standard chemotherapeutics has become a choice of treatment for several kinds of cancers. Hypertension, third-degree albuminuria, thrombosis and cardiotoxicity are the reported side-effects of bevacizumab. Among them, cardiotoxicity is a most severe, but rare outcome.

Which antineoplastic drug is most commonly associated with cardiac toxicity?

The most common chemotherapy drugs related to cardio-toxicity include:

5-fluorouracil (Adrucil)
Paclitaxel (Taxol)
Anthracyclines (a class of drugs)
Targeted therapies: such as monoclonal antibodies and tyrosine kinase inhibitors.
Some Leukemia drugs.

Is trastuzumab toxic to the heart?

Per the package insert, trastuzumab can cause “left ventricular dysfunction, arrhythmias, hypertension, disabling cardiac failure, cardiomyopathy and cardiac death.” Cardiac dysfunction, the most commonly seen side effect in clinical practice, is the focus of this brief review.

Is trastuzumab cardiotoxicity reversible?

Although the main cardiotoxicity of trastuzumab is only an asymptomatic decline in LVEF and is mostly reversible with interruption of trastuzumab or cardiac medication, some patients, especially those with cardiac risk factors, may rarely experience chronic heart failure or prolonged LVEF reduction.

Which chemotherapy drug causes cardiotoxicity?

Cytostatic antibiotics of the anthracycline class are the best known of the chemotherapeutic agents that cause cardiotoxicity. Alkylating agents such as cyclophosphamide, ifosfamide, cisplatin, carmustine, busulfan, chlormethine and mitomycin have also been associated with cardiotoxicity.

Why does Herceptin cause heart problems?

During Herceptin treatment, which is recommended for one year, toxicity can cause the heart to become too weak to pump blood. All patients on Herceptin undergo regular cardiac tests, such as an echocardiogram, to look for possible heart damage.

Is Herceptin heart damage reversible?

In rare cases, heart failure develops. Heart function can recover when Herceptin treatment stops. Other research has shown that heart problems caused by Herceptin are more likely to happen in: older women.

Is heart damage from Herceptin permanent?

Can Herceptin cause cardiomyopathy?

One of the known side effects of the breast cancer drug trastuzumab (Herceptin) is that it can damage the heart and its ability to pump blood effectively, sometimes resulting in mild heart failure, including shortness of breath and chest pain.

Why was Avastin taken off market?

On November 18, 2011, the US Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) announced that breast cancer indication for Avastin (bevacizumab) had been withdrawn after concluding that the drug has not been shown to be safe and effective for the treatment of breast cancer.