Stroke link to irregular heartbeat varies by sex and age in cancer
In lung cancer, stroke hazard ratios comparing people with and without atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, were 3.4 in women and 2.6 in men.
Limit: The abstract gave no absolute stroke rates
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
The observational study used Swedish health registers to examine 661,523 adults with breast, lung, blood or gastrointestinal cancers. Researchers matched patients with atrial fibrillation, an irregular heartbeat, to patients without it by cancer type, sex and age decade. Follow-up lasted up to 55 years.
Across cancer types, women with atrial fibrillation had a higher incidence of ischemic stroke, caused by blocked blood flow to the brain, than men with the condition. Compared with matched patients without atrial fibrillation, relative stroke risks were disproportionately higher in women and people younger than 65. For lung cancer, hazard ratios—a measure comparing stroke rates over time—were 3.4 in women and 2.6 in men. The researchers suggested that current stroke-risk models may have important limitations for people with cancer.
Why it matters
The results raise questions about how well current stroke-risk models assess younger and older adults with cancer. The authors supported sex- and age-specific assessment and careful reconsideration of medicines that reduce blood clotting.
Caveats
This observational study could not establish cause and effect and was reported as a conference abstract. The findings concern adults with the four studied cancer groups; the abstract gave no absolute stroke rates.
The paper
Sahlgrenska Academy - University of Gothenburg
ESC Congress 2026 Abstract, Oct 26, 2026
Presented at ESC Congress 2026
