Prospective evaluation of Doppler echocardiography, tissue Doppler imaging and biomarkers measurement for the detection of doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity in dogs: A pilot study

•Echocardiographic or electrocardiographic changes may be observed after a low cumulative dose of doxorubicin in some dogs•Cardiac troponin I and Doppler-derived E/A ratio are affected by doxorubicin administration in dogs•Cardiac troponin I measurement may be of interest to monitor cardiotoxicosis in dogs receiving doxorubicin•Monitoring of left ventricular diastolic function may be of interest in dogs receiving doxorubicin

The purpose of this pilot study was to evaluate the usefulness of selected echocardiographic parameters, NT-proBNP and cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in the detection of cardiotoxicity in dogs treated with doxorubicin for various malignancies. Echocardiographic studies and biomarker measurements were performed before each administration of doxorubicin, then 1 and 3 months after completion of therapy. Thirteen dogs were included, with a total cumulative dose of doxorubicin ranging from 30 to 150 mg/m2. E/A ratio significantly decreased during doxorubicin administration (p = 0.047). cTnI level was also significantly affected by treatment (p = 0.046), increasing above normal at least at one time point in 11 of 13 dogs.The results of this pilot study suggest that monitoring of left ventricular diastolic function and cTnI level measurement might be useful in the early detection of cardiotoxic signs of doxorubicin therapy in dogs.