New AI Risk Prediction Model for Cancer Patients After Heart Attacks
Researchers at the University of Leicester have developed an innovative artificial intelligence tool to assess the risk of subsequent heart attacks in cancer patients. Those who experience a heart attack often face heightened dangers due to their compromised cardiovascular health, increasing the likelihood of mortality, severe bleeding, or additional cardiovascular incidents.
Cancer characteristics can elevate risks of bleeding or arterial clotting, or a combination of both, necessitating tailored anti-platelet therapies for prevention after the initial event. Previously, clinicians lacked a standardized method to guide care for this high-risk population. Now, an international research team, led by experts at the University of Leicester, has created the first specialized risk prediction model for cancer patients recovering from heart attacks.
ONCO-ACS: Combining AI with Clinical and Cancer Data
Dubbed ONCO-ACS, this tool leverages artificial intelligence to integrate cancer-specific factors with conventional clinical information. It forecasts the probability of death, major bleeding, or recurrent cardiac events within six months.
The underlying study, published in The Lancet, examined data from over one million heart attack patients across England, Sweden, and Switzerland, including more than 47,000 individuals with cancer. Dr. Florian A. Wenzl, an honorary fellow at the University of Leicester and lead author of the study, stated: “Cancer patients with heart attacks have long been neglected in clinical research, despite being one of the most challenging groups we see in cardiology.”
“Results in this study showed that cancer patients had strikingly poor prognosis: nearly one in three died within six months, while around one in 14 suffered a major bleed and one in six experienced another heart attack, stroke, or cardiovascular death,” Dr. Wenzl added. “Now this new tool is able to give doctors reliable information to tailor treatment and balance the benefits and harms.”
Progress in treating both heart disease and cancer has led to greater coexistence of these conditions, presenting cardiologists and oncologists with more complex cases. The team addresses this challenge using real-world data to bridge the gap.
Professor David Adlam, an interventional cardiologist in the University of Leicester’s Department of Cardiovascular Sciences and senior author, noted: “Significant advances in the management of heart disease and cancer alike have created new opportunities for these conditions to coexist. As a result, the growing overlap between cancer and heart attacks will confront cardiologists and oncologists with an increasingly complex patient population. We are addressing this pressing issue through a real-world data perspective.”
Potential Impact on Clinical Practice and Future Research
Experts anticipate that the ONCO-ACS score will integrate into routine clinical workflows to inform choices on catheter interventions and antiplatelet regimens. It offers a validated framework to apply clinical guidelines effectively and supports the design of upcoming trials to enhance outcomes for cancer patients post-heart attack.
Senior author Professor Thomas F. Lüscher from the National Heart and Lung Institute at Imperial College London and the Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals emphasized: “By accounting for both cancer and heart disease, ONCO-ACS marks a step towards truly personalised medicine.”
The research received funding from Cancer Research UK and the British Heart Foundation, with additional support from Health Data Research UK’s Big Data for Complex Diseases Driver Programme. DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736
