Cancer Medication Can Lead to Heart Failure

US researchers studying the side effects of the cancer medication Sutent have found that nearly 15% of the patients treated with the drug developed heart failure. Prescribed for the treatment of kidney and stomach cancers, the drug was also found to damage heart cells.

Sutent is a widely prescribed medication and works by starving tumours. It stops the tumours from developing blood vessels to feed themselves. In addition to being used for kidney and stomach, Sutent is also being extensively tested for the treatment of several other cancers.

However, the new findings might place the efficacy and usefulness of the drug in a negative light. Dr. Melinda Telli and colleagues of the Stanford University School of Medicine in California studied 48 patients who were on sunitinib, the generic version of Sutent manufactured by Pfizer, for their kidney cancer or gastrointestinal stromal tumour (GIST).

Heart failure, a dangerous condition in which the heart becomes unable to pump blood properly, was detected in seven or 15% of the study participants. The findings further confirmed the results of a study reported in the December issue of the medical journal Lancet. The earlier study found that 50% of 75 patients with GIST who were administered the medication in a clinical trial developed high blood pressure with 8% developing heart failure and two people suffering heart attacks.

“Our data demonstrate the need for routine cardiac monitoring in patients receiving sunitinib,” said Dr. Telli. “Cardiac adverse effects need to be carefully examined in future trials of sunitinib to determine the factors that place patients at risk for this complication. That information will allow us to administer this medication more safely to patients for whom the benefits of treatment clearly outweigh the risks.”

Heart failure is a serious condition that can be treated with a number of medications. However, when it is the result of a particular treatment or medication, it usually clears up when the medication is stopped. Dr. Telli’s team presented their findings at the Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in San Francisco.

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