Cardiac monitoring of patients receiving arsenic trioxide therapy.

Arsenic trioxide (ATO) is approved for the treatment of acute promyelocytic leukaemia and is under investigation for other malignancies. We report the cardiac findings in 18 patients with haematologic malignancies treated with ATO and assess the role of cardiac factors in fluid retention syndrome observed during ATO therapy. Based on initial observations in 10 patients treated with ATO, cardiac functions in the subsequent eight patients were evaluated prospectively.