Outcomes after cardiopulmonary resuscitation in the cancer patient

As the incidence of cancer diagnosis increases and life expectancy of cancer patients improves, events of cardiac arrest in this patient population will also increase. Survival post-cardiac arrest has improved in the cancer patient since first described in the 1970s. However, short-term survival continues to be lower when compared to the general population. Despite this, it is not enough to deny cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) just in the basis of a history of cancer. Therefore, a close understanding of the variables that impact survival of the cancer patient after cardiac arrest is of extreme importance to help both physicians and patients make educated clinical decisions.