Autonomic Dysfunction Among Adult Survivors of Childhood Cancer in the St. Jude Lifetime Cohort Study

The burden and functional significance of autonomic dysfunction among survivors of childhood cancer is unknown.

We evaluated the prevalence, risk factors, and functional relevance of autonomic dysfunction in survivors.

We conducted a cross-sectional prospective evaluation of 1,041 adult survivors of childhood cancer treated with anthracyclines (31.1%), chest-directed radiation (13.5%), both (19.5%), or neither (35.9%), and 286 community control subjects enrolled in the SJLIFE (St Jude Lifetime Cohort Study). Four measures of autonomic dysfunction were evaluated: elevated resting heart rate, decreased heart rate reserve, decreased systolic blood pressure response to exercise, and delayed heart rate recovery. Logistic regression tested associations with impaired cardiorespiratory fitness (peak Vo₂ < 80% predicted).

Survivors (50.7% female) were 9.0 ± 5.8 years at cancer diagnosis and 35.5 ± 8.9 years at evaluation. Prevalence (survivors vs control subjects) of elevated resting heart rate (17.9% vs 7.0%), decreased heart rate reserve (21.7% vs 9.1%), decreased systolic blood pressure response to exercise (25.3% vs 12.6%), and delayed heart rate recovery (24.3% vs 10.6%) was more than 2-fold higher among survivors (P < 0.001 for all). Carboplatin (adjusted OR: 2.50; 95% CI: 1.42-4.40; P = 0.001), chest-directed radiation therapy (adjusted OR: 2.06; 95% CI: 1.52-2.75; P < 0.001), and cranial radiation (adjusted OR: 1.49; 95% CI: 1.08-2.05; P = 0.015) were associated with an increased likelihood of having ≥2 measures of autonomic dysfunction. Survivors with ≥2 measures of autonomic dysfunction were at increased risk for impaired cardiorespiratory fitness (adjusted OR: 2.71; 95% CI: 1.82-4.02; P < 0.001).

Survivors of childhood cancer manifest a higher prevalence of autonomic dysfunction associated with impaired cardiorespiratory fitness.