The beneficial role of exercise in preventing doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity

Abstract

Doxorubicin is a highly effective chemotherapeutic agent widely used to treat a variety of cancers. However, the clinical application of doxorubicin is limited due to its adverse effects on several tissues. One of the most serious side effects of doxorubicin is cardiotoxicity, which results in life-threatening heart damage, leading to reduced cancer treatment success and survival rate. Doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity results from cellular toxicity, including increased oxidative stress, apoptosis, and activated proteolytic systems. Exercise training has emerged as a non-pharmacological intervention to prevent cardiotoxicity during and after chemotherapy. Exercise training stimulates numerous physiological adaptations in the heart that promote cardioprotective effects against doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity. Understanding the mechanisms responsible for exercise-induced cardioprotection is important to develop therapeutic approaches for cancer patients and survivors. In this report, we review the cardiotoxic effects of doxorubicin and discuss the current understanding of exercise-induced cardioprotection in hearts from doxorubicin-treated animals.

Toxic Effects of Penetrating Cations

“…It has been reported that Dox-induced killing of cancer cells is mediated by intercalation within DNA base pairs, preventing the synthesis of both DNA and RNA and inhibiting topoisomerase II. Dox also intercalates mitochondrial DNA [89]. This can cause breaks in the mitochondrial DNA, either in one strand or both.…”

Unraveling the “golden ratio”: a pilot study investigating acute-to-chronic workload ratio in breast cancer patients undergoing active treatment

“…Several non-pharmacological treatments, like lifestyle modifications, have addressed such adverse events. To date, exercise is one of the most well-researched conservative modalities for mitigating breast cancer patients’ adverse events ( Loprinzi and Cardinal, 2012 ; Palesh et al, 2018 ; Gaytan et al, 2023 ). Indeed, exercise interventions may enhance physical functioning, improve body composition, QoL and autonomic dysfunction, and reduce CRF during chemotherapy or radiotherapy in breast cancer patients ( Courneya et al, 2007 ; Furmaniak et al, 2016 ; Lavín-Pérez et al, 2021 ).…”

Prospective affirmative therapeutics of cannabidiol oil mitigates doxorubicin-induced abnormalities in kidney function, inflammation, and renal tissue changes

“…Doxorubicin, an anthracycline antibiotic, is a highly potent chemotherapy drug frequently used to treat a number of malignancies. Even though DOX has strong anticancer properties, its clinical application is constrained by unfavorable side effects such as nephrotoxicity, hepatotoxicity, cardiotoxicity, and gonad toxicity, besides damaging effects on a number of tissues (Öztürk et al 2020 ; Ali et al 2021 ; Alherz et al 2022 , 2023 ; Gaytan et al 2023 ). A well-known rat model of renal failure is DOX-induced nephropathy.…”