arteries Archives - Iran News Daily

Immune-boosting Treatment of Cancer May Worsen Arteries

reporter 1222 — Thu, 10 Sep 2020 04:57:09 +0000

TEHRAN (Iran News) – A type of cancer treatment used to boost the body’s immune system may worsen inflammation in the arteries that distribute blood from the heart, according to a small study.

The research, published in the American Heart Association (AHA) journal Circulation, found increased inflammation in the large arteries of 20 Austrians with melanoma immediately following treatment with immune checkpoint inhibitors. The drugs are a type of cancer treatment known as immunotherapy because they strengthen the ability of the body’s immune system to attack cancer cells, medicalxpress.com reported.

“The study provides evidence that [immune checkpoint inhibitor] therapy aggravates present atherosclerosis and treating physicians should consider potential complications here,” said study senior author Dr. Marcus Hacker, of the division of nuclear medicine at the Medical University of Vienna, Austria.

Immunotherapy has been shown to be effective for many people with cancers resistant to chemotherapy and radiation. Immune checkpoint inhibitors work by thwarting the part of the body’s immune system that keeps it from responding too strongly, to protect healthy cells from being destroyed. Drugs that block immune checkpoints make it easier for the body’s infection-fighting T-cells to kill cancer cells. But side effects include potential cardiovascular damage.

People who have cancer are generally at greater risk of dying from cardiovascular disease than the general population. A 2019 study in the European Heart Journal found that over nearly 40 years, more than one in 10 cancer survivors in the United States died from some form of cardiovascular disease, most often from heart disease. According to American Cancer Society statistics, there are about 17 million US cancer survivors.

While the new study looked at people with just one type of tumor, Hacker said his team has since expanded its investigation to lymphoma patients, finding similar results that have not yet been published. What’s needed next, he said, are studies that look at whether the increased arterial inflammation in people receiving immune checkpoint inhibitors leads to heart problems later in life.

A larger study that tracks patients for 10 or 20 years would be a logical next step, said Carolyn Miller Reilly, a professor at Emory University’s Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing in Atlanta. She coauthored a recent AHA scientific statement about the intersection of cardiovascular medicine and cancer treatments — an emerging field known as cardio-oncology.

“The changes they are showing here are not going to immediately demonstrate adverse events,” said Reilly, who was not involved in the new research. “It’s not like we’re going to give this drug, and a month later the patient is going to have a heart attack. But it’s going to cause plaque buildup that can become more unstable. Long-term, we may see the development of cardiovascular disease.”

The study does not suggest cancer patients —even those with pre-existing cardiovascular disease — should forego immune checkpoint inhibitor therapy, she added, noting that inflammation had worsened most in those with the mildest plaque buildup. “I would not withhold this treatment as the benefits outweigh the risk.”

Instead, she said, oncologists may wish to consider strategies to mitigate any impact on the heart and consult with a cardio-oncologist to evaluate a specific patient’s cardiovascular disease risk.

Reilly often teaches about the need for lifestyle changes to control risk factors for cancer and heart disease by optimizing weight, decreasing cholesterol levels, eating a healthy diet, exercising and maintaining good blood pressure control. “Cancer and heart disease have all the same risk factors,” she said.

In some cases, medications may also be useful, Hacker said.

“If our study results can be replicated in prospective settings, we should think about future combination therapies with atherosclerosis-stabilizing agents like statins to potentially protect patients at cardiovascular risk from unfortunate events after therapy.

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Skipping Breakfast Associated with Hardening of the Arteries

reporter 1222 — Sun, 14 Jan 2018 15:15:59 +0000

TEHRAN – Skipping breakfast is associated with an increased risk of atherosclerosis, or the hardening and narrowing of arteries due to a build-up of plaque, according to research.

The research was published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Eating a healthy breakfast has been shown to promote greater heart health, including healthier weight and cholesterol. While previous studies have linked skipping breakfast to coronary heart disease risk, this is the first study to evaluate the association between breakfast and the presence of subclinical atherosclerosis.

“People who regularly skip breakfast likely have an overall unhealthy lifestyle,” said study author Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, MACC director of Mount Sinai Heart and editor-in-chief of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. “This study provides evidence that this is one bad habit people can proactively change to reduce their risk for heart disease.”

Researchers in Madrid examined male and female volunteers who were free from cardiovascular or chronic kidney disease. A computerized questionnaire was used to estimate the usual diet of the participants, and breakfast patterns were based on the percentage of total daily energy intake consumed at breakfast. Three groups were identified — those consuming less than five percent of their total energy intake in the morning (skipped breakfast and only had coffee, juice or other non-alcoholic beverages); those consuming more than 20 percent of their total energy intake in the morning (breakfast consumers); and those consuming between five and 20 percent (low-energy breakfast consumers). Of the 4,052 participants, 2.9 percent skipped breakfast, 69.4 percent were low-energy breakfast consumers and 27.7 percent were breakfast consumers.

Atherosclerosis was observed more frequency among participants who skipped breakfast and was also higher in participants who consumed low-energy breakfasts compared to breakfast consumers. Additionally, cardiometabolic risk markers were more prevalent in those who skipped breakfast and low-energy breakfast consumers compared to breakfast consumers. Participants who skipped breakfast had the greatest waist circumference, body mass index, blood pressure, blood lipids and fasting glucose levels.

Participants who skipped breakfast were more likely to have an overall unhealthy lifestyle, including poor overall diet, frequent alcohol consumption and smoking. They were also more likely to be hypertensive and overweight or obese. In the case of obesity, the study authors said reverse causation cannot be ruled out, and the observed results may be explained by obese patients skipping breakfast to lose weight.

“Aside from the direct association with cardiovascular risk factors, skipping breakfast might serve as a marker for a general unhealthy diet or lifestyle which in turn is associated with the development and progression of atherosclerosis,” said Jose L. Peñalvo, PhD, assistant professor at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University and the senior author of the study. “Our findings are important for health professionals and might be used as a simple message for lifestyle-based interventions and public health strategies, as well as informing dietary recommendations and guidelines.”

Prakash Deedwania, MD, professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco and author of the accompanying editorial comment said that this study provides clinically important information by demonstrating the evidence of subclinical atherosclerosis in people who skip breakfast.

“Between 20 and 30 percent of adults skip breakfast and these trends mirror the increasing prevalence of obesity and associated cardiometabolic abnormalities,” Deedwania said. “Poor dietary choices are generally made relatively early in life and, if remained unchanged, can lead to clinical cardiovascular disease later on. Adverse effects of skipping breakfast can be seen early in childhood in the form of childhood obesity and although breakfast skippers are generally attempting to lose weight, they often end up eating more and unhealthy foods later in the day. Skipping breakfast can cause hormonal imbalances and alter circadian rhythms. That breakfast is the most important meal of the day has been proven right in light of this evidence.”

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