Cancer and heart failure: prevalence, incidence, and prognosis in Scotland

European Heart Journal 2026 Open access

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Authors: Antonio Iaconelli, Moustafa I Morsy, Jocelyn M Friday, Pierpaolo Pellicori, B M P Elyan, Ninian N. Lang, Jill P. Pell, J Lewsey, Daniel Mackay, Ruth Dundas, Tran Q B Tran, Denise Brown
+15 more Frederick K. Ho, Claire E. Hastie, Michael Fleming, C Geue, Alan Stevenson, Clea du Toit, S Padmanabhan, Pasquale Maffia, Luca Sensini, Maria Vittoria Feccia, Giovanni Pecorini, Stefan D Anker, Markus S. Anker, Filippo Crea, John G F Cleland
DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehag120
Cited by: 3
References: 51

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Many patients with cancer develop heart failure (HF), and many patients with HF develop cancer. Inter-relationships between their natural histories are rarely reported. METHODS: Health records were obtained for a Scottish region. People aged >50 years were classified by the presence or absence of HF, loop diuretics (a pharmacological marker of congestion), and cancer. Incident cancer, mortality, and cause of death were recorded. RESULTS: Of 317 178 people aged >50 years, 11 268 (3.6%) had HF of whom 6276 were prescribed loop diuretics; a further 19 044 (6.0%) received loop diuretics. Thus, 30 312 (9.6%) people met an expanded definition of heart failure (HFexp). Annual cancer incidence was slightly higher for those with HFexp (incidence rate ratio 1.10; P < .001), varying amongst cancer types. For people with neither cancer nor HFexp, mortality was

Fields of Study & Subjects

Chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity and mitigation Metabolism Diabetes and Cancer Lung Cancer Treatments and Mutations

Publication details

Journal / source
European Heart Journal
Publisher
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Volume
47
Issue
24
Pages
3152–3169
Publication date
12 February 2026
Language
EN