Left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) in cancer patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Abstract

e24010 Background: Cancer increases the risk of atrial fibrillation (AF), particularly in patients over 65 or those with pre-existing cardiovascular disease. Patients with active cancer are at a higher risk of arterial and venous thrombosis. Oral anticoagulation (OAC) is recommended in most patients with comorbidities, based on the CHA2DS2-VASc score. However, because OAC raises the risk of bleeding, it might not be appropriate for patients who have significant or frequent bleeding episodes, vascular malformations, or other contraindications. Anticoagulation in cancer patients is challenging due to thrombocytopenia, bleeding risks, and interactions with chemotherapy. Left atrial appendage Closure (LAAC) offers an alternative to anticoagulation for mitigating stroke risk in nonvalvular AF patients. However, this procedure has been offered less frequently as concerns regarding its prognosis among cancer patients remain unclear. This article aims to find the prognosis of cancer patients with LAAC. Methods: A systematic search was conducted in electronic databases from inception until June 2024 using appropriate Mesh terms. Pooled risk ratios (RR) with their corresponding 95% confidence intervals (CI) were calculated using random effects models. A p-value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 5 studies with a population of 1,20,502 (Cancer Patients: 3803 and Non- Cancer patients: 116699) were included which met all the inclusion criteria. An increased risk of in-hospital mortality among cancer patients with LAAC (RR=1.90; 95% CI=1.05–3.45, P=0.03) with statistically significant was observed. However, other parameters were comparable including, 30 days readmission (RR=1.12; 95% CI=0.95–1.032), all-cause mortality (RR=1.33; 95% CI=0.72–1.95), any bleeding complication (RR=1.04; 95% CI=0.37–1.70), Cardiovascular complication (RR=1.44; 95% CI=0.51–4.06), thromboembolism (RR= 2.28; 95% CI=0.57–9.06), and neurological complication (RR=0.81; 95% CI=0.17–1.46). Conclusions: There were increased chances of in-hospital mortality among cancer patients than in non-cancer patients with LAAC procedures. However, other parameters like cardiovascular complications, any bleeding complications, thromboembolism, and neurological complications were not significantly associated. Further studies are warranted to validate these findings.