Adults with a history of cancer are more vulnerable to future heart disease than patients without cancer, independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors, according to the first prospective cohort study of its kind.

According to US clinicians, having had cancer is associated with a 52% and 22% increased risk of heart failure and stroke, respectively.

“CVD screening and prevention practices among cancer survivors are highly variable and often neglected due to limited evidence guiding practice as well as misconceptions regarding competing risks of cancer mortality,” the authors wrote.

Using data from more than 12,000 participants in the prospective ARIC (Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities) study, the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine-led team examined the risk of CVD following cancer diagnosis and treatment.