Abstract Body (Do not enter title and authors here): Background: Cyclophosphamide is an alkylating agent of the nitrogen mustard class that has become standard of care for graft-versus-host disease prophylaxis after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Although its cardiac toxicity in conditioning regimens is well-documented, data on cardiac events after administration of post-transplant cyclophosphamide (PT-Cy) administration remains limited.
Research question: Is PT-Cy associated with a higher incidence of cardiac adverse events compared with no PT-Cy?
Aims: We aimed to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of cardiac events from studies comparing PT-Cy versus no PT-Cy in patients with hematological disorders who received hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Methods: We searched PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library for studies comparing PT-Cy versus no PT-Cy in patients with hematological conditions who received hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. We pooled risk ratios (RR) with 95% confidence intervals (CI). Statistical analyses were performed using Review Manager 5.4.1, under a random-effects model. Heterogeneity was assessed using I2 statistics.
Results: We included four studies, all of which were retrospective, with 1,546 patients, of whom 826 (53%) received PT-Cy. Age ranged from 18 to 77 years, and 840 (54%) were male. A total of 1549 allogeneic transplants were performed, primarily for malignant hematological conditions. The conditioning regimens used were myeloablative (52%), reduced intensity (33%), non-myeloablative (8%), and sequential (7%). The most common cardiac events in patients receiving PT-Cy were heart failure (28%) and cardiomyopathy (27%), followed by arrhythmias (25%), pericarditis/pericardial effusion (14%) and acute coronary syndrome (5%). The incidence of adverse cardiac events was significantly higher in patients who received PT-Cy compared with those who did not receive PT-Cy (RR 2.05; 95% CI 1.36, 3.10; p<0.001; I²=44%).
Conclusion: These findings suggest that PT-Cy is associated with a higher incidence of adverse cardiac events, the most common of which is heart failure/cardiomyopathy.