Heart failure heightens the risk of developing cancer, according to a group of doctors in Groningen who have carried out wide-ranging research using both mice and humans.

A heart with a damaged pump excretes a substance which can stimulate the growth of tumors, the doctors found. The results of the research are published in the medical journal Circulation.

‘Heart failure upsets the entire system,’ research leader Rudolph de Boer told the NRC. ‘It speeds up biological ageing. Patients can develop problems with their kidneys, liver and often become anaemic.

‘We saw a lot of people in our clinic who were anaemic who were notably dying of cancer. Our hypothesis was that this was due to the damaged heart.’