Doctors have long treated heart disease and cancer as two separate health problems.
Heart specialists focus on the cardiovascular system, while cancer specialists focus on tumors and abnormal cell growth.
However, scientists are increasingly finding that these two major diseases may be more closely connected than previously believed. A new study led by researchers at UCLA Health provides fresh evidence that subtle changes in the heart may be linked to a person’s future risk of developing cancer.
The study was published in the Journal of the American Heart Association and suggests that small changes in heart structure and function may appear many years before certain cancers are diagnosed.
The findings could eventually help doctors identify people who are at higher risk and encourage earlier prevention efforts.
Heart disease and cancer are the two leading causes of death worldwide. Although they are usually considered separate conditions, they share many of the same risk factors.
Smoking, obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, poor diet, and lack of physical activity can increase the risk of both diseases. Scientists have also discovered that chronic inflammation and other biological processes may contribute to the development of both heart disease and cancer.
To explore this connection, researchers analyzed information from the Multi-Ethnic Study of Atherosclerosis, often called MESA. This large research project began more than two decades ago and follows thousands of adults across the United States. Participants entered the study between 2000 and 2002 and did not have known cardiovascular disease when they joined.
The study included more than 6,000 adults between the ages of 45 and 84. Participants came from several racial and ethnic groups, including non-Hispanic White, Black, Hispanic or Latino, and Chinese American communities. This diversity allowed researchers to examine the findings across a broad population.
At the beginning of the study, participants underwent detailed heart imaging using cardiac MRI scans. Cardiac MRI is one of the most advanced ways to examine the heart. It allows doctors to measure the size, shape, and function of different heart chambers and muscles with remarkable accuracy.
Researchers then followed participants for an average of 18 years. During this time, they tracked who developed cancer and looked for relationships between early heart measurements and later cancer diagnoses.
The findings revealed several interesting patterns. People who showed subtle signs of what doctors call cardiac remodeling were more likely to develop certain cancers in the future. Cardiac remodeling refers to small changes in the size, shape, or function of the heart. These changes may occur long before symptoms of heart disease become obvious.
One of the strongest findings involved breast cancer. Researchers found that women with greater heart muscle mass, particularly in the left ventricle, had a higher risk of developing breast cancer later in life. The left ventricle is the heart’s main pumping chamber and is responsible for sending oxygen-rich blood throughout the body.
The researchers also discovered a connection between heart function and colorectal cancer. Individuals with poorer function in the left atrium, one of the heart’s upper chambers, were more likely to develop colorectal cancer during the follow-up period. People with healthier measurements of left atrial function appeared to have a lower risk.
Over the course of the study, researchers identified 790 new cancer cases, including breast, colorectal, lung, and prostate cancers. As signs of cardiac remodeling increased, cancer rates also tended to increase.
Lead author Dr. Xinjiang Cai emphasized that the findings do not prove that heart changes directly cause cancer. Instead, the study shows an association between the two. Other factors may be involved, and researchers cannot rule out the possibility that unknown influences contributed to the results.
The study builds upon earlier research that found elevated heart-related blood markers and coronary artery calcium scores were linked to future cancer risk. What makes this study different is the use of sophisticated MRI scans to detect very early changes in heart structure and function before disease becomes apparent.
The findings may have important implications for preventive medicine. Current guidelines already encourage aggressive management of high blood pressure, obesity, diabetes, and other cardiovascular risk factors when early heart changes are detected. If future research confirms these results, the same preventive strategies may also help reduce cancer risk.
One of the most exciting possibilities is that heart imaging could eventually become a tool for identifying people at increased risk for both cardiovascular disease and cancer. This would allow doctors to intervene earlier through lifestyle changes, monitoring, and preventive treatments.
From a scientific perspective, this study is important because it highlights the growing understanding that diseases throughout the body are interconnected. The findings support the idea that heart disease and cancer may share common biological pathways.
However, the study is observational, meaning it cannot establish cause and effect. Additional large studies are needed to confirm the results and uncover the mechanisms responsible for the association.
Nevertheless, the research opens an intriguing new direction that could eventually improve prevention strategies for two of the world’s most serious diseases.
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