Forum Discussion

ddon's avatar
ddon
Member
6 years ago

AC affecting the heart?

I know long term chemo can affect the heart but has anyone felt it during treatment? I have had one session and my resting heart rate has gone up 20 bpm and hasn’t come down. I was so nauseated and tired for 4 days that I took no notice but now I am better it’s still there beating away so much faster than before. I have been a fit active person with a really low resting pulse and now it’s quite fast. I only have 2 weeks between treatments and no opportunity to talk about this with my oncologist between getting hooked up and treated again. This bothers me - I am prepared for coming out the other end of this with a different body but not prepared for heart damage. Wondering if anyone else noticed anything like this?
chemotherapy
chemotherapy-side-effects
  • Afraser's avatar
    Afraser
    Member
    6 years ago
    Your heart is certainly not your oncologist’s focus but he/she can refer you for any suspected problem. My oncologist admitted me to hospital so I could see the duty cardiologist as soon as possible. Turned out to be an excellent choice! And you can nudge your oncologist in that direction. You are your best advocate when it comes to joining the dots between specialisations. 
  • Brenda5's avatar
    Brenda5
    Member
    6 years ago
    See your GP who should be able to give you a cardiogram at the surgery. He may also ask for an ultrasound of the heart. If he is concerned, he will bring in a heart specialist to monitor you. When my heart rate went to 170 I went to the ER. It seems my heart has made up a second electrical impulse and I have two heart beats now. I take meds to keep one at bay. I have no high blood pressure and never really have had. Just rapid beats since chemo and AI.
    Oncology is to give you chemo and stop the cancer. That is their focus and they will try different drugs to trick your body into accepting the chemo. Apart from checking blood pressure, they don't investigate heart problems.
     
  • Afraser's avatar
    Afraser
    Member
    6 years ago
    I developed an arrhythmia during chemo, detected while on Taxol but A/C a more likely trigger. The issue was however compounded by age and a bit of high blood pressure so hard to really determine ‘cause’. Eminently treatable and 7 years on is now very hard to detect. Also most unlikely in someone younger. But I was asymptomatic - no idea my heart rate was 130! That’s what tests before each treatment are for! 
  • ddon's avatar
    ddon
    Member
    6 years ago
    wow - your husband was fit - I am not in the triathlete category. But you’re right, it’s a big increase. So much stuff goes on with the body during chemo and other than a broad overview of possible side effects it’s hard to sort out what is probably normal and what isn’t. One day my throat was so sore and it hurt just to open my mouth. For hours. Then it just faded away and got better and never came back. Weird. 
    Anyway, feeling almost normal today otherwise and it’s so good to enjoy a cup of coffee again. 
  • arpie's avatar
    arpie
    Member
    6 years ago
    Good on you @ddon  -  It is so important to be aware of your normal 'rates' for everything, as your baseline reference.

    My husband's resting pulse is well below 50 (he was a very fit athlete/triathlete for 65 years - but age has finally caught up with him now at 83.)    Looking at it statistically - that is a pretty well a 30% increase of your 'normal' heart rate, so applied to a regular person, that would put theirs up at 100+ and THEY would be concerned too .... and keep in mind that body temp only needs to go up .5˚+  to be worrisome!

    All the best xx
  • ddon's avatar
    ddon
    Member
    6 years ago
    Thank you both. I will try to talk to the oncology clinic Monday. I have thought of going through emergency department for an ECG but I feel like I am being overly anxious I guess. As a former nurse I know no one will be alarmed that my heart rate is 80 bpm but it’s not normal for me. I feel it would be stupid to not get it checked though. I can’t go back if I leave it and  it gets worse. 
  • arpie's avatar
    arpie
    Member
    6 years ago
    So sorry you've had this side effect from your chemo @ddon

    There must be some way of contacting your Onc before your next treatment - even if it is to see a different onc for a 2nd opinion.  Can you contact your closest hospital to see who is 'on call'?  

    My mantra has always been IF IN DOUBT, GET CHECKED OUT - so if you are still worried about this (and I can see why!) go to Emergency and get it all documented so there is a paper trail.

    My husband developed a heart condition following his chemo 10 years ago.

    I put up a post about it a while back - tho I don't think any happened during treatment other than @Brenda5 - but hers was from AIs.
     https://onlinenetwork.bcna.org.au/discussion/19592/cardiomyopathy-and-chemo-a-serious-condition-to-be-aware-of/p1

    All the best - and I hope it settles down for you asap . xx
  • Afraser's avatar
    Afraser
    Member
    6 years ago
    At very least talk to the oncology nurses about this but perhaps you can get a message to your oncologist? Or through your GP? My blood pressure and heart rate were checked before each treatment, which is how a heart issue was detected (I was blithely unaware of it). It may well  be a temporary reaction but you are right to have it noted and checked. Best wishes.