Early Identification of Cardivascular Damage Induced by Chemotherapy and Antineoplastic Treatments in Pediatric Age

Overview

To test whether the implementation of new diagnostic techniques (ultrasonography, speckle tracking, vascular stiffness study, cardiac MRI, and histologic studies) allows in CAYA (Childern, Adolescents, and Young Adults) cancer survivors a more sensitive and earlier identification of cardiovascular damage resulting from antineoplastic therapy that develops either acutely or remotely after completion of antineoplastic therapy.

Cardiovascular system is among the main target organs of toxicity of some antineoplastic treatments. Pretreatment cardiotoxicity risk stratification and timing tailored to patient needs are strategies recognized in cardiology but not yet well validated in the pediatric population. Currently, follow-up of the pediatric patient diagnosed with oncologic disease involves serious cardiologic evaluation, independent of cardiovascular risk factors and focused on recognition of left ventricular systolic dysfunction. The use of new diagnostic methods to study the pediatric patient exposed to antineoplastic therapy and the personalization of follow-up on the basis of pretreatment cardiovascular risk could allow early identification of cardiotoxic damage and thus prevent its progression.

Conditions