iSCAD - International SCAD registry
Australia scientists and patients join global effort to fight SCAD
30 May 2022
Sydney mother Lana Huntley has joined forces with scientists from the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute to try and shed light on the number one of cause of heart attack for women under the age of 50.
Lana from Sydney’s North Shore has become the first Australian patient to be added to a huge international database of people who have had a spontaneous coronary artery dissection, otherwise known as a SCAD heart attack.
Like most survivors Lana had no warning signs and was otherwise fit and healthy when she suffered her SCAD heart attack in 2022.
Unlike traditional heart attacks, SCAD is not associated with a plaque build-up and a blockage of the arteries and until recently little was known about this mysterious disease which primarily affects women.
Scientists at the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute are now part of a global effort trying pinpoint the cause of the disease and accelerate preventative treatments.
They’ve become the first research team outside of the USA to join the iSCAD Registry – the International SCAD registry - a global collaboration of researchers and patients investigating the features and pathophysiology of SCAD.
Professor Jason Kovacic, Executive Director of the Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute, said: “SCAD is still a little-known disease, but it has a huge impact and is behind a quarter of all heart attacks in women under the age of 50. We urgently need to learn more about this disease and to discover what is causing it - this disease can not only be life threatening but in some patients, it can reoccur and without warning.
“We owe it to SCAD survivors like Lana, who had no idea she was at risk of having a heart attack.”
Lana’s sister Annette has also suffered two SCAD heart attacks – the first of which was in 2002. Until recently it was not thought to be a disease that had a strong genetic predisposition and Lana had no idea, she could be at an increased risk of having a heart attack.
Lana said: “My sister and I are so lucky that we survived our SCAD heart attacks and it is vitally important to us both that we find out the cause. We were both relatively fit and healthy and had no warning signs when we had our heart attacks.
“Given we have both had heart attacks, you’d assume it was in our genetics. This is why it’s so vital we get answers so our daughters and nieces can be protected from this awful disease which hits without warning. I hope by being part of this registry I can make a difference.”
Evidence is now showing that there are at least 16 genes associated with SCAD. Professor Kovacic’s team is leading research into a gene called PHACTR1 which has been identified as having one of the strongest genetic associations with SCAD.
The iSCAD Registry contains the medical history of 1271 SCAD patients – who until now were all from the United States. Lana’s medical history is now being added to the registry with many more Australian patients to follow.
Professor Kovacic said joining iSCAD would make a huge difference to the research being carried out at the Institute.
“By combining forces with other leading SCAD scientists and being able to conduct research with the iSCAD team on so many more patients, we will be able to achieve far more,” said Professor Kovacic, who is also a cardiologist.
It’s hoped that Lana’s DNA which is being studied by the Institute’s scientists will also be added to the database next year.
SCAD Facts
- Previously SCAD was thought to be a rare disease, but recently it has been found to be the cause of 2-4% of all cases presenting to hospital with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) such as a heart attack.
- Research suggests it also accounts for up to 24% of cases of heart attack in women under the age of 50.
- SCAD heart attack survivors have around a 20% chance of having another attack.
- It is the most common cause of heart attack associated with pregnancy.
- Nine out of 10 people who have a SCAD heart attack are women.
- SCAD results when an inner layer of one of the blood vessels in the heart tears. Blood seeps between the artery layers, forms a blockage and can slow or block blood flow to the heart, causing angina, heart attack, abnormalities in heart rhythm or sudden death.
- People who develop SCAD are often healthy with no known risk factors of heart disease such as high blood pressure, diabetes or high blood cholesterol.
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For all media enquiries and interview requests, please contact:
Julia Timms
Head, Media & Communications
j.timms@victorchang.edu.au
0457 517 355
“It was a huge shock when my sister Lana had her SCAD heart attack. Like me, she was fit and healthy then, and we didn't think she could be at risk.“
- Annette Maher, SCAD patient
Acknowledgement of Country
The Victor Chang Cardiac Research Institute acknowledges Traditional Owners of Country throughout Australia and recognises the continuing connection to lands, waters and communities. We pay our respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures; and to Elders past and present.
