Dr. Charles Simone of the University of Pennsylvania Health System is the study's lead author.  He says the study looked at the heart health of women more than 25 years after radiation treatments.

"It should really continue to be a standard option for women," Simone says. "This study hopefully should reassure many women that, at least for cardiac outcomes, there's no appreciable increased risk with radiation therapy."

Simone says patients in the study underwent extensive testing, including blood sampling and imaging.

He presented the findings at the American Society for Radiation Oncology's Annual Meeting.

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