Dexrazoxane shows long-term heart protection for childhood cancer survivors

A study published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology reports that dexrazoxane, a drug given during chemotherapy, continues to protect heart function in childhood cancer survivors at least 15 years after treatment ends. Researchers from the University of Florida, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, and the University at Buffalo analyzed data from nearly 900 survivors who received doxorubicin, an anthracycline chemotherapy agent used for leukemia, lymphoma, and sarcoma.

Anthracyclines remain a cornerstone of pediatric cancer therapy despite their known risk of weakening the heart muscle and enlarging cardiac chambers, which can lead to heart failure later in life. In the trial, half of the participants received dexrazoxane alongside their chemotherapy, while the other half did not.

Echocardiograms performed years after treatment showed that survivors who received dexrazoxane had significantly healthier heart structure and function. Many of these patients were classified at moderate rather than high risk for cardiac damage, a distinction that could eventually reduce the frequency of lifelong cardiac screening.

The study, supported by the National Institutes of Health and the Children's Oncology Group, is the first large-scale, long-term analysis to demonstrate sustained cardioprotection into young adulthood. Previous research had documented benefits at earlier follow-up points, but not at this duration.

Lead author Erin Mobley, an assistant professor of surgery at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Jacksonville, noted that any changes to screening guidelines would require further study as survivors enter their 50s and 60s. Mobley, herself a pediatric cancer survivor who received anthracyclines, emphasized the psychological value of the findings for families.

"It could give patients and their families a little bit of peace of mind," Mobley said. The research team plans to continue tracking the cohort to better understand cardiovascular aging in this population.