Pericarditis in a Case of Early Daunorubicin Cardiomyopathy

Excerpt

The anthracycline antibiotics, daunorubicin and adriamycin, may both produce serious cardiac toxicity (1, 2). Cardiomyopathy appearing within months of a cumulative

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dose of daunorubicin exceeding 750 mg/m² body surface was initially described. The cardinal features were cardiomegaly with biventricular failure and reduced electrocardiogram (ECG) voltage variably responsive to medical therapy. Subsequently the syndrome was observed after smaller doses, and fulminant cardiovascular collapse was described. We witnessed such a case 6 days after a total daunorubicin course of 210 mg/m² body surface where pericarditis heralded the cardiac toxicity.

A 41-year-old woman was referred for treatment of recently