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Updated: Mar 12, 2026

Voluntary Breath-hold Technique for Reducing Heart Dose in Left Breast Radiotherapy
Published on: July 3, 2014
Restrictive cardiomyopathy : Delayed occurrence after radiotherapy of breast cancer
Barbara Bellmann1, Brunilda Alushi2, Boris Bigalke2
1Department of Cardiology, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12200, Berlin, Germany. barbara.bellmann@charite.de.
A 74-year-old female patient was referred to our department in 2015 with dyspnea, cough and dysphagia. She had been diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the right breast in 1986 and underwent mastectomy. When she presented with a local recurrence in 1988, she was receiving high-voltage radiation therapy. Transthoracic echocardiography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed tricuspid regurgitation grade III and unclear right heart failure with a massively dilated right atrium. Coronary heart disease could be ruled out. In summary, the patient's findings represented right ventricular myocardial restriction which we attributed to irradiation of the right anterior chest 17 years previously.
A 74-year-old female patient was referred to our department in 2015 with dyspnea, cough and dysphagia. She had been diagnosed with adenocarcinoma of the right breast in 1986 and underwent mastectomy. When she presented with a local recurrence in 1988, she was receiving high-voltage radiation therapy. Transthoracic echocardiography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed tricuspid regurgitation grade III and unclear right heart failure with a massively dilated right atrium. Coronary heart disease could be ruled out. In summary, the patient's findings represented right ventricular myocardial restriction which we attributed to irradiation of the right anterior chest 17 years previously.
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