New biomarkers for early detection of cardiotoxicity after treatment with docetaxel, doxorubicin and cyclophosphamide

OBJECTIVE: Assessing a diverse biomarker panel (NT-proBNP, TNF-alpha, galectin-3, IL-6, Troponin I, ST2 and sFlt-1) to detect subclinical cardiotoxicity after treatment with anthracyclines. METHODS: Of 55 breast cancer patients biomarkers were assessed and echocardiography was performed one year after treatment with anthracyclines. RESULTS: 29.1% of patients showed abnormal biomarker levels: NT-proBNP in 18.2%, TNF-alpha and Galectin-3 in 7.3%. IL-6, troponin I, ST2 and sFlt-1 were normal in all patients. A correlation between left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and NT-proBNP was observed (r = -0.564, p </= 0.01). CONCLUSION: The evaluated biomarkers do not contribute to early detection. Future research should focus on NT-proBNP