Anticancer treatment and thrombosis

Venous thromboembolic (VTE) complications are common in patients with cancer and represent the second cause of death in this disease. The risk of VTE varies according to the type of malignancy and with the extent of the cancer. Patients with VTE and more advanced, metastatic disease face worse clinical outcomes. Important in this setting is the triggering role of antitumor therapies, including cancer surgery and active treatments such as chemotherapy, hormonal and anti-angiogenic therapy, which further increase the cancer-associated thrombotic risk. Predictive models for VTE in cancer patients are now available and will allow the possibility of improving outcomes for patients under chemotherapy by identifying those who would benefit most from thromboprophylaxis. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.