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Doxorubicin Cardiotoxicity

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Cancer and the Heart

Abstract

Doxorubicin (Adriamycin) is an antineoplastic agent that is highly efficacious in the treatment of malignant lymphoma, leukemia, and solid tumors such as sarcomas and carcinomas of the breast, lung, and thyroid.1–4 Repetitive administration of doxorubicin and its analogue, daunorubicin, can cause cardiotoxicity, which has been primarily related to the cumulative dose of the administered drug. This observation has led to recommendations that the total dose of doxorubicin not exceed 550 mg/m2.4 There is considerable individual variation in cardiac tolerance to this drug. Some patients have tolerated doses of greater than 5000 mg/m2 without cardiac dysfunction, and others have received 40 mg/m2 and developed fatal congestive heart failure.5 Since patients treated with Adriamycin are now surviving longer, cardiotoxicity seems to surface more often. Clinical expression of toxicity is often observed several months after the last dose of the agent.6

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Authors
  1. Amar S. Kapoor
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Ellis Fischel State Cancer Center, Columbia, Missouri, USA

    Amar S. Kapoor M.D., F.A.C.P., F.A.C.C., F.C.C.P. (Chief of Cardiology, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine) (Chief of Cardiology, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine)

  2. University of Southern California, School of Medicine, 4950 Sunset Boulevard, 90027, Los Angeles, California, USA

    Amar S. Kapoor M.D., F.A.C.P., F.A.C.C., F.C.C.P. (Chief of Cardiology, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine) (Chief of Cardiology, Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine)

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© 1986 Springer-Verlag New York Inc.

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Kapoor, A.S. (1986). Doxorubicin Cardiotoxicity. In: Kapoor, A.S. (eds) Cancer and the Heart. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4898-9_21

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4612-4898-9_21

  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-0-387-96245-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4612-4898-9

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

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