Right versus left breast radiation and coronary artery disease: is there a differential?

There is literature supporting the view that chest radiation (CR) for the management of primary or metastatic cancer of the mediastinum and chest, including breast cancer is associated with all types of heart disease, including coronary artery disease (CAD), manifesting during long-term follow-up. This review explores the literature about the association of CR for the management of cancer and CAD, particularly focussing on breast cancer, and further on the differential between CR for right versus left breast cancer. The balk of the literature suggests that there is higher incidence of CAD in patients undergoing left versus right-CR for breast cancer, and that cardiologists and oncologists need to become involved systematically in their assessment prior to CR and at subsequent follow-up.