Findings seen among people without known heart disease years before a cancer diagnosis
WEDNESDAY, June 24, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Changes in heart structure and function may occur years before certain cancers are diagnosed, according to a study published online June 9 in the Journal of the American Heart Association.
Xinjiang Cai, M.D., Ph.D., from the University of California, Los Angeles, and colleagues examined the association between cardiac magnetic resonance imaging-derived measures of subclinical cardiac remodeling and incident cancer. The analysis included 6,214 participants in the Multi‐Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis cohort, followed for a median 18.7 years and without known heart disease.
The researchers found that overall cancer incidence was higher with a greater left ventricular mass index or left ventricular mass/volume ratio and lower with higher left atrial emptying fraction or peak left atrial longitudinal strain. A greater left ventricular mass index was significantly associated with a higher risk for breast cancer (hazard ratio [HR], 1.88), and higher peak left atrial strain was significantly associated with a lower risk of colorectal cancer (HR, 0.52).
“This study suggests that structural and functional changes in the heart may occur alongside — or even before — biological processes linked to cancer development,” Cai said in a statement. “It adds to mounting evidence that these two diseases share underlying biological pathways and are intertwined.”
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