In a recent study, researchers evaluated the risks and predictors of cardiovascular mortality (CVM) among patients with gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs), noting an increased overall risk of CVM in cancer survivors over time. Utilizing data from the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database spanning from 2000 to 2019, the research included a total of 12,058 GIST patients. The analysis revealed that 477 (4.0%) of these patients died due to cardiovascular disease (CVD). The study employed the standardized mortality ratio to assess the risk of CVM in GIST patients, finding it significantly higher compared with the general population (SMR of 3.23).
Factors that increased the risk of CVM included male gender, older age at diagnosis, being of White race, unmarried status, an earlier year of diagnosis, and not undergoing chemotherapy. These findings highlight the significantly higher risk of CVM in patients with GIST relative to the general US population. The study concludes with a recommendation for timely screening and cardioprotective measures to mitigate the risk of CVM in GIST patients, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions in this patient group.
Reference: Yao H, Shi H, Fan M, Yuan L, Lin R. Cardiovascular-Specific Mortality among Gastrointestinal Stromal Tumor Patients: A Population-Based Analysis. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2023;2023:3619306. doi: 10.1155/2023/3619306.
