Cardiac surgery patients with active cancer or a prior cancer history face significantly shorter long-term survival, a recent study indicates.
In a retrospective analysis of 83 adults, those with a cancer diagnosis had a mean survival of 93.6 months, starkly contrasting with 156.8 months for patients without cancer. While in-hospital mortality was similar between groups, cancer was identified as an independent predictor of worse long-term outcomes.
Additional factors associated with poorer survival included hospital stays longer than one week and the need for fresh frozen plasma.
The findings underscore the importance of a multidisciplinary approach in evaluating surgical candidates. This involves balancing expected cardiac benefits against the patient's cancer trajectory and anticipating potential postoperative complexities.