Introduction

The contemporary landscape of cardiology, oncology and disease prevention is being shaped by complex paradigm shifts. Cardio-oncology represents one of the most rapidly growing fields of collaborative clinical practice, patient-centred care and research. Several factors contribute to the expansion of this field. Notably, remarkable therapeutic advances have been transforming breast cancer (BC) into a chronic condition and, in many cases, a curable disease. BC is the most common cancer in women worldwide, contributing about 25% of all newly diagnosed cases.1 Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death in women irrespective of BC.2 High background CVD risk preceding BC diagnosis, cardiotoxic effects of oncological therapies, lifestyle changes secondary to cancer and increasing life expectancy of BC survivors all contribute to the need for a complex spectrum of care for these patients (figure 1). The recognition of shared risk factors opens opportunities for common primary prevention. Following cancer diagnosis and in survivorship, cardio-oncological care including lifestyle optimisation and CVD risk mitigation can reduce BC recurrence as well as CVD development.