Congestive heart failure after anthracycline-containing treatment for Hodgkin lymphoma: A Swedish matched cohort...

Congestive heart failure (CHF) is a known complication after anthracyclines and radiotherapy for classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL). Contemporary cHL treatment may be associated with less risk because radiotherapy use and techniques have changed substantially over time.

In this study, Swedish cHL patients diagnosed in 2000-2018, and treated with adriamycin [doxorubicin], bleomycin, vinblastine, and dacarbazine (ABVD) or bleomycin, etoposide, Adriamycin [doxorubicin], cyclophosphamide, vincristine, procarbazine, and prednisone (BEACOPP), were matched 1:10 to the general population on birth year and sex to investigate relative rates and cumulative risks of CHF.

A total of 1994 cHL patients were included, with a median age of 34 years. The median follow-up was 8.1 years. The CHF rate was higher for patients versus comparators (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] = 3.02, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.26-4.02). Patients treated with ≤200 mg/m² of anthracyclines had HR of 2.89 (95% CI: 1.51-3.47) versus 3.91 (95% CI: 2.72-5.60) for >200 mg/m². Treatment with ABVD was associated with a significantly higher CHF rate (adjusted HR = 3.25, 95% CI: 2.31-4.23), while BEACOPP was not (adjusted HR = 1.95, 95% CI: 0.91-4.16). The increase in relative rates translated to the absolute scale, with an increased risk persisting up to 18 years for low cumulative doses.

These findings highlight that cHL survivors still face a substantial excess risk of CHF in the modern treatment era and that focus on cardiovascular health remains relevant.