Rapidly progressive dyspnea in gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) with imatinib cardiac toxicity.

Title

Rapidly progressive dyspnea in gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) with imatinib cardiac toxicity.

Creator

Ghias Adnan Asif Parvez; Bhayani Shahzeem; Gemmel David J; Garg Sudershan K

Publisher

Journal of community hospital internal medicine perspectives

Date

2018
1905-07

Description

Gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GISTs) are rare and current estimates range from 4,000 to 6,000 number of GIST cases in the USA annually. Imatinib, a tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has shown a survival benefit in GISTs, and the presence of KIT mutation status is predictive of response. The current case discusses rapidly progressive dyspnea and heart failure in an elderly male with metastatic GIST who was started on imatinib. Although reported as a rare and sporadic side effect of imatinib, the current case illustrates rapidity and the clinical significance of cardiotoxicity, with onset at 2 weeks. Cases of imatinib-induced cardiotoxicity can range from being mild ventricular dysfunction to overt heart failure. Prior to starting imatinib, our patient had a history of hypertension. He subsequently ended up developing heart failure as acknowledged by the echocardiogram (ECHO). In general, elderly with preexisting cardiovascular comorbidity are at greater risk. The goal in such situations is immediate discontinuation or reduction of the imatinib dosage. The case prompts for awareness of imatinib cardiotoxicity. Moreover, a pretreatment cardiac assessment along with monitoring throughout therapy is therefore advisable. Also, imatinib-induced cardiotoxicity should be differentiated from imatinib-associated fluid retention, in which ECHO findings can be normal. This case report raises the concern for accelerated cardiotoxicity profile of imatinib. Further prospective studies with multidisciplinary input are needed to establish this association further.

Subject

cardiac toxicity; fluid retention; Gastrointestinal stromal tumors; GISTs; heart failure; imatinib; imatinib toxicity; LV dysfunction; rare

Rights

Article information provided for research and reference use only. All rights are retained by the journal listed under publisher and/or the creator(s).

Pages

87–91

Issue

2

Volume

8

Citation

Ghias Adnan Asif Parvez; Bhayani Shahzeem; Gemmel David J; Garg Sudershan K, “Rapidly progressive dyspnea in gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) with imatinib cardiac toxicity.,” NEOMED Bibliography Database, accessed March 28, 2024, https://neomed.omeka.net/items/show/4133.