VCAM1 and familial dilated cardiomyopathy: Accordingly, patients with virus-induced DCM showed high expression of cardiac VCAM-1 (cVCAM-1) when compared to patients with non-inflammatory DCM, indicating that enhanced cVCAM-1 expression suggests a possible inflammatory etiology of DCM.[10] The role of sVCAM-1 as a biomarker for disease severity has not yet been defined for inflammatory heart diseases.