Childhood cancer survivors are at substantial risk of developing cardiovascular disease even decades after their cancer treatment. In particular, heart failure due to anthracyclines and chest radiotherapy are common late effects. Surveillance programs are in place to early detect cardiac dysfunction, before it potentially progresses into clinical heart failure. However, currently used echocardiographic measures are rather late measures of cardiac dysfunction. My PhD project within this nationwide study focuses on detailed description of prevalence and treatment-related risk factors for cardiac dysfunction measured on echocardiography as well as early detection strategies with myocardial strain analyses. Furthermore we evaluate the joint diagnostic value of blood biomarkers (PhD project Jan Leerink) and electrocardiography (PhD project Esmée de Baat).
Supervisors Radboudumc: Prof. dr. L. Kapusta, Prof. dr. ir. C.L. de Korte, Dr. J. Loonen
Supervisors Prinses Máxima Center: Dr. E.A.M. Feijen, Dr. A.M.C. Mavinkurve-Groothuis, Prof. Dr. L.C.M. Kremer
Supervisors Amsterdam UMC: Prof dr. Y. Pinto, Dr. W.E.M. Kok
Publications:
Merkx R, Feijen ELAM, Leerink JM, de Baat EC, Bellersen L, van Dalen EC, van Dulmen-den Broeder E, van der Heiden-van der Loo M, van den Heuvel-Eibrink MM, de Korte CL, Loonen J, Louwerens M, Ronckers CM, Teske AJ, Tissing WJE, de Vries ACH, Mavinkurve-Groothuis AMC, van der Pal HJH, Weijers G, Kok WEM, Kremer LCM, Kapusta L; Dutch LATER Study Group. Cardiac function in childhood cancer survivors treated with vincristine: Echocardiographic results from the DCCSS LATER 2 CARD study. Int J Cardiol. 2022 Aug 1:S0167-5273(22)01118-4.
Merkx R, Leerink JM, Feijen ELAM, Kremer LCM, de Baat EC, Bellersen L, et al.; Dutch LATER Study Group. Echocardiography protocol for early detection of cardiac dysfunction in childhood cancer survivors in the multicenter DCCSS LATER 2 CARD study: Design, feasibility, and reproducibility. Echocardiography. 2021 Jun;38(6):951-963.Merkx R, Leerink JM, de Baat EC, Feijen EAM, Kok WEM, Mavinkurve-Groothuis AMC et al. Asymptomatic systolic dysfunction on contemporary echocardiography in anthracycline-treated long-term childhood cancer survivors: a systematic review. J Cancer Surviv. 2021 Mar 27.
Noordman ID, Fejzic Z, Bos M, Duijnhouwer AL, Weijers G, …, Merkx R et al. Cardiac abnormalities in girls with Turner syndrome: ECG abnormalities, myocardial strain imaging, and karyotype-phenotype associations. Am J Med Genet A. 2021 May 10.
Leerink JM, van der Pal HJH, Kremer LCM, Feijen EAM, Meregalli PG, …, Merkx R et al. Refining the 10-Year Prediction of Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction in Long-Term Survivors of Childhood Cancer. JACC: CardioOncology. 2021; 3(1):62-72.
Leerink JM, de Baat EC, Feijen EAM, Bellersen L, …., Merkx R, Kremer LCM. Cardiac Disease in Childhood Cancer Survivors. JACC: CardioOncology. 2020; 2(3):363-78.