Voslamber, Suzan (2025) Increased incidence of atrial fibrillation following breast cancer treatment: association or coincidence? A long-term follow-up study. thesis, Medicine.
Full text available on request.Abstract
Background: Breast cancer survivorship has improved considerably over the past decades, making it increasingly important to understand the risks associated with cancer treatments. Previous research has linked breast cancer treatment to a higher risk of atrial fibrillation (AF), but has primarily focused on the short-term effects, leaving the long-term effects less well understood. Objective: To assess the risk of AF following breast cancer treatment with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy during long-term follow-up. Methods: A longitudinal cohort study was conducted among breast cancer survivors treated with chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy (n = 263) and matched controls with no history of breast cancer and these treatments (n = 261). The incidence of AF and its associated risk factors were assessed through general practice record review. We compared outcomes between breast cancer survivors and controls and conducted a subgroup analysis comparing chemotherapy (± radiotherapy) (n = 135) to radiotherapy without chemotherapy (n = 128). Results: Median follow-up was 20 years; median age was 72 for survivors and 73 for controls. AF occurred in 11.4% of survivors and 6.5% of controls (p = 0.050) (OR 1.8 [95%CI 1.0-3.4]). Subgroup analysis revealed more cases of AF in the radiotherapy group (14.1%) compared to chemotherapy (± radiotherapy) (8.9%), though not statistically significant (p = 0.187) (OR 1.7 [95%CI 0.8-3.6]). Conclusion: The findings from this study suggest that breast cancer survivors might have an increased risk of developing AF during long-term follow-up. Further research needs to be done to truly establish this association and identify which subgroups are at risk, so targeted interventions can be implemented.
| Item Type: | Thesis (UNSPECIFIED) |
|---|---|
| Supervisor name: | Brandenbarg, D. and Wal, L.T. van der |
| Faculty: | Medical Sciences |
| Date Deposited: | 20 May 2026 13:56 |
| Last Modified: | 20 May 2026 13:56 |
| URI: | https://umcg.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/3957 |
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