Table 1. Baseline clinical characteristics of patients treated with anthracyclines.
All patients were women. GLS, absolute value of the GLS. Continuous variables are presented as means ± SD. Categorical variables are presented as number (percent). The following clinical characteristics were different between the discovery and validation cohorts when compared using the chi-square test: Dox treatment (P = 0.04), epirubicin treatment (P = 0.04), trastuzumab treatment (P < 0.0001), radiotherapy (P = 0.04), hyperlipidemia (P = 0.002), heart rate (P = 0.03), heart failure symptoms (P = 0.04), and baseline GLS (P = 0.004). LVEF, left ventricular ejection fraction. ACE, angiotensin-converting enzyme.
| Clinical characteristics | Discovery cohort (n = 30) | Validation cohort (n = 31) |
|---|---|---|
| Age, years | 50 ± 12 | 52 ± 14 |
| Cancer treatments | ||
| Doxorubicin (240 mg/m2) | 26 (87) | 31 (100) |
| Epirubicin (300 mg/m2) | 4 (13) | 0 (0) |
| Cyclophosphamide | 30 (100) | 31 (100) |
| Taxane | 30 (100) | 30 (97) |
| Trastuzumab | 30 (100) | 5 (16) |
| Radiotherapy | 17 (57) | 25 (81) |
| Type of cancer | ||
| Right breast cancer | 10 (33) | 11 (35) |
| Left breast cancer | 18 (60) | 18 (58) |
| Bilateral breast cancer | 2 (7) | 1 (3) |
| Endometrial cancer | 0 (0) | 1 (3) |
| Cardiovascular risk factors | ||
| Hypertension | 12 (40) | 11 (35) |
| Diabetes mellitus | 1 (3) | 5 (16) |
| Hyperlipidemia | 8 (27) | 10 (32) |
| Smoking | 2 (7) | 4 (13) |
| Cardiovascular treatments | ||
| β-blocker | 3 (20) | 5 (16) |
| ACE inhibitor | 5 (17) | 11 (35) |
| Body mass index, kg/m2 | 26 ± 4 | 29 ± 8 |
| Systolic blood pressure, mm Hg | 120 ± 18 | 128 ± 17* |
| Diastolic blood pressure, mm Hg | 72 ± 10 | 73 ± 10* |
| Heart rate, beats/min | 69 ± 8 | 73 ± 10† |
| Heart failure symptoms | 6 (20) | 1 (3) |
| Echocardiographic parameters | ||
| Baseline LVEF | 0.64 ± 0.05 | 0.63 ± 0.04 |
| Maximum decline in LVEF | 0.11 ± 0.07 | 0.05 ± 0.07 |
| Time to maximum decline, months | 9 ± 4 | 5 ± 3 |
| Baseline GLS | 21 ± 2 | 19 ± 3 |
| Percent decline in GLS at 3 months | 14 ± 11 | 0.5 ± 15 |
*Available in 28 patients.
†Available in 26 patients.