Long-term risk of cardiovascular mortality in lymphoma survivors: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Cardiovascular disease has been identified as one of the late complications of cancer therapy. The purpose of this study was to quantify the long-term risk of cardiovascular mortality among lymphoma survivors relative to that of the general population. A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted. Articles were identified in November 2016 by searching EMBASE, MEDLINE, and CINAHL databases. Observational studies were included if they assessed cardiovascular mortality in patients with lymphoma who survived for at least 5 years from time of diagnosis or if they had a median follow-up of 10 years. A pooled standardized mortality ratio (SMR) was estimated using a DerSimonian and Laird random-effects model. The Q and I² statistics were used to assess heterogeneity. Funnel plots and Begg's and Egger's tests were used to evaluate publication bias. Of the 7450 articles screened, 27 studies were included in the systematic review representing 46 829 Hodgkin and 14 764 non-Hodgkin lymphoma survivors. The pooled number of deaths attributable to cardiovascular disease among Hodgkin and non-Hodgkin disease was estimated to be 7.31 (95% CI: 5.29-10.10; I² = 95.4%) and 5.35 (95% CI: 2.55-11.24; I² = 94.0%) times that of the general population, respectively. This association was greater among Hodgkin lymphoma survivors treated before the age of 21 (pooled SMR = 13.43; 95% CI: 9.22-19.57; I² = 78.9%). There was a high degree of heterogeneity and a high risk of bias due to confounding in this body of literature. Lymphoma survivors have an increased risk of fatal cardiovascular events compared to the general population and should be targeted for cardiovascular screening and prevention campaigns.