Cytotoxicity of drugs can be a cause of cardiorespiratory disorders connected with chemotherapy.
Doxorubicin is an antibiotic from the group of anthracyclines effective in antineoplastic
therapy of solid and hematopoetic tumors. The most common cause of therapy ceasing is its
cardiotoxicity. However, a lung injury connected with its cytotoxic activity to pulmonary
endothelium (capillary leak syndrome) can be an equally serious complication. In the case
presented, rapid, multi-profile diagnostics with the use of impedance cardiography, a modern
noninvasive tool of hemodynamic monitoring, led to the recognition and effective treatment of
a rare clinical syndrome. (Cardiol J 2010; 17, 1: 88-91