New research finds link between heart disease and cancer deaths, with men being at greatest risk

New research from Keele University and the University of Aberdeen has found that men with cardiovascular disease are at higher risk of cancer and death from cancer than women.   

The study found this pattern across all subtypes of cancer, with lung cancer and colorectal cancers accounting for the highest risk.   

Published in the European Heart Journal, the team looked at data from more than 20,000 people over a 25-year period to identify how gender differences in health outcomes of people living with cardiovascular disease. 

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is an umbrella term for a range of conditions affecting the heart and blood vessels. These can include diseases such as coronary heart disease, atrial fibrillation, heart failure, stroke and vascular dementia.  

According to recent data from the British Heart Foundation, it is estimated that there are over 8 million people living with cardiovascular disease in the UK and it causes around a quarter (26 per cent) of all deaths in the UK; that's around 170,000 deaths a year, or 460 each day – one every three minutes. 

Whilst there is already a known link between cardiovascular disease and cancer, this relationship seemed to differ between the sexes, although there was very limited and sometimes contradictory evidence.  

This study is the first to identify how sex affects the relationship between the CVD and cancer. This could now be used to inform public health strategies to try to achieve a more equal health outcome between men and women.  

Professor Phyo Myint, Chair in Old Age Medicine at the University of Aberdeen led the research. The team examined the health records of some 22,534 people in the UK over a 25-year period using the EPIC-Norfolk database. The EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer) Norfolk study is a population-based study, co-ordinated by a management team based at the IMS Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge.  

Professor Mamas Mamas, Professor of Cardiology at Keele University highlighted that whilst the future risk of cardiovascular disease in patients with cancer is well known, it is now becoming evident that patients with cardiovascular risk are at increased risk of cancer, with important sex differences in cancer types.  

He said: “We need to better understand the driver of cancer development in these populations. Furthermore, whilst cardio-oncology services have focussed mainly on cancer patients preventing the development of cardiovascular diseases, we need better pathways that can identify and prevent cancer development in patients with cardiac conditions.”  

Dr Tiberiu Pana, Specialty Registrar in Cardiology at NHS Grampian and Honorary Early Career Clinical Research Fellow at the University of Aberdeen, said: “We examined how men and women differed in in their risk of cancer incidence and death over more than 25 years.  

“We found that cancer incidence and death were higher in people with cardiovascular disease than in those without – a relationship we already knew a bit about. However, through looking at this large patient group over a very long period of time we were able to examine it more thoroughly.  

“We have identified clear differences between men and women across a range of factors in those with cardiovascular disease and all types of cancer. 

“We found that men had a higher incidence of both getting cancer in the first place and sadly, also in dying from it, and this was particularly true among people with cardiovascular disease. 

“Although the pattern was the same across all subtypes of cancer, this was most pronounced in lung and oesophageal cancers.” 

The team suggest that the association between cardiovascular disease and cancer is likely mediated by lifestyle risk factors, such as smoking, obesity and alcohol consumption. They say it is important to target these modifiable risk factors as early as possible to avoid the occurrence of either condition.  

Professor Myint proposes that early cardiovascular disease screening be incorporated as a cancer preventative strategy, particularly in men, given the results of this study. He added: “More needs to be done to improve risk management, targeted screening and prevention to address this health inequality.”