Radiation Toxicity to the Cardiovascular System.

Radiation therapy is an important component of cancer treatment, and today, it is applied to approximately 50% of malignancies, including valvular, myocardial, pericardial, coronary or peripheral vascular disease, and arrhythmias. An increased clinical suspicion and knowledge of those mechanisms is important to initiate appropriate screening for the optimal diagnosis and treatment. As the number of cancer survivors has been steadily increasing over the last decades, cardio-oncology, an evolving subspecialty of cardiology, will soon play a pivotal role in raising awareness of the increased cardiovascular risk and formulate strategies to optimally manage patients in this unique population.

Managing heart failure better: the value of implantable device data.

The heart failure disease state is challenging, time consuming and expensive to manage. Physicians are responsible for initiating, titrating and optimizing drug and device therapy to reduce morbidity and mortality. Failure to manage these aspects of care often results in worsening of symptoms and recurrent hospitalizations.