Genetic factors in anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity in patients treated for pediatric cancer

Cardiovascular diseases are the main cause of treatment-related morbidity and mortality in childhood cancer patients. Anthracyclines, one of the most common chemotherapeutic agents in treatment regimens, are implicated in chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity. This review describes the pharmacogenomic markers related to anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity affecting childhood cancer patients. We also included a brief overview of the applicability of reported findings to the well-established PETALE cohort of childhood acute lymphoblastic leukemia survivors of the Sainte-Justine University Health Center (Canada). The wide variation in interindividual susceptibility to anthracycline-induced cardiotoxicity, along with a multitude of genetic variants detected through association studies, suggests that genetic contributions could be essential for the design of new individualized preventive approaches.