ROTTERDAM: Researchers have found that commonly used heart failure medicines may help protect cancer patients from heart damage during anticancer treatment, offering new hope for safer cancer care.
The findings, presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2026, examined whether guideline recommended heart therapies can reduce treatment related heart problems and help patients complete their cancer therapy.
Heart damage caused by cancer treatments, known as cardiotoxicity, remains a major concern in oncology because it can force doctors to pause or stop anticancer therapies. This may affect treatment success and patients long term outcomes.
To better understand how heart protective medicines work in cancer patients, researchers conducted a meta analysis of previous studies involving people who received anticancer drugs. The study was led by Ymke Appels, a researcher at Erasmus Medical Center’s Cardiovascular Institute and Thorax Center in Rotterdam.
Appels said current guidelines recommend certain heart failure treatments for cancer patients showing signs of heart dysfunction, but much of the supporting evidence comes from smaller studies or expert recommendations.
The research team reviewed medical studies that evaluated heart protective therapies recommended in the 2021 ESC heart failure guidelines and the 2023 update. The analysis included both randomized clinical trials and other prospective and retrospective studies.
Researchers examined several types of medicines, including renin angiotensin aldosterone system inhibitors, beta blockers, mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists, SGLT2 inhibitors and statins.
The analysis included 49 studies involving 6,998 patients receiving cancer treatment. Researchers mainly measured changes in left ventricular ejection fraction, a key indicator of how well the heart pumps blood.
Among 23 studies involving RAAS inhibitors, patients showed an average improvement of 2.88% in heart pumping ability compared with patients receiving standard care or placebo.
Beta-blockers were also linked to improved heart function, although the benefit was smaller. Across 22 studies, patients using beta-blockers showed a 1.20% improvement in left ventricular ejection fraction.
Patients receiving a combination of RAAS inhibitors and beta-blockers showed a 2.98% improvement in heart function, suggesting that combined treatment may provide additional protection.
Researchers also found improvements in global longitudinal strain, another measure of heart contraction, among patients treated with RAAS inhibitors, beta-blockers and their combination.
Mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists showed promising results, with a 4.68% improvement in heart function compared with control groups.
Researchers said more studies are needed to confirm these findings and determine which heart therapies provide the strongest protection for cancer patients.
