Primary and secondary cardiac tumors: clinical presentation, diagnosis, surgical treatment, and results

Percutaneous Intracardiac Mass Extraction in High Surgical-Risk Patients

Large intracardiac masses including tumors, thrombi, and vegetations result in detrimental embolic or obstructive sequelae and present a management dilemma. Open heart surgery, the traditional approach, may not be an option for many patients with a prohibitive surgical risk due to multiple comorbidities. Recently, percutaneous options have emerged with reported success in extracting such intracardiac masses. A 42-year-old female with history of advanced primary sclerosing cholangitis with decompensated liver cirrhosis causing ascites and variceal bleed presented to the emergency department with fatigue, subjective fevers, chills and melena. Laboratory results revealed neutrophil-predominant leukocytosis and normocytic anemia, and blood cultures were positive for Candida albicans. Electrocardiography showed sinus tachycardia. Chest X-ray was unremarkable. She underwent packed red blood cell transfusion and esophageal banding for variceal bleeding. Transthoracic echocardiogram revealed normal left ventricular ejection fraction and no wall motion abnormalities. A right atrial mobile mass measuring approximately 1.0 × 3.0 cm was noted. Multidisciplinary heart team discussion concluded that while the mass posed a high embolic risk, the patient had a prohibitive risk for surgical intervention. Successful percutaneous removal of the mass using Penumbra system device (Penumbra Incorporated, Alameda, CA) was accomplished. This case report details the procedure and outcomes, as well as presents a literature review.

Totally thoracoscopic surgical resection of left ventricular benign tumor

OBJECTIVE

The study objective was to explore the feasibility and safety of totally endoscopic resection of a left ventricular tumor through small chest incisions without robotic assistance.

METHODS

Four patients with a left ventricular tumor (1 papillary fibroelastoma, 1 lipoma, and 2 myxomas) underwent surgery with peripheral cardiopulmonary bypass. The mean age of patients was 58 ± 15 years. There were 3 female patients and 1 male patient. Through 3-port incisions in the right chest, pericardiotomy, bicaval cannulation, cardiac arrest, and atriotomy, left ventricular tumor resection was performed under thoracoscopy.

RESULTS

All patients had successful resections. The cardiopulmonary bypass and aortic crossclamp times were 110 ± 14 minutes and 58 ± 19 minutes, respectively. The length of stay in the intensive care unit was 38 ± 27 hours. There were no mortalities or complications in this cohort. Patients were discharged 7 days after the operation. Transthoracic echocardiography showed that the cardiac tumor was completely removed without any residue 3 months after surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

Totally endoscopic left ventricular tumor resection without a robotically assisted surgical system is feasible and reproducible. This technique could minimize surgical trauma and achieves complete tumor resection.

Primary Cardiac Tumor in the Left Atrium: A Diagnostic Challenge

An elderly man presented to the emergency department with shortness of breath, peripheral edema, and significant weight loss. Blood tests revealed anemia and elevated inflammatory markers, and chest imaging showed a massive left pleural effusion. During hospitalization, he developed subacute cardiac tamponade, and pericardiocentesis was performed. Further imaging revealed a primary malignant cardiac tumor with extensive infiltration of the cardiac tissue, and biopsy was deemed impossible due to the tumor's location. The most likely diagnosis was angiosarcoma. The cardiac surgery team evaluated the case and considered it inoperable due to the tumor's extensive infiltration. The patient is currently under the regular care of a palliative care team. This case underscores the difficulties of diagnosing primary cardiac tumors, particularly in elderly patients with comorbidities. Despite advances in imaging and surgical techniques, the prognosis for malignant cardiac tumors remains poor.

Neonatal Myxomas: Case Report and Literature Review

Myxomas are rare tumors in neonates and tend to have a different presentation compared to adults. We present an infant with a left atrial myxoma presenting with episodic tachycardia who underwent successful surgical excision. In addition, we performed a review of the literature, identifying 17 cases of neonatal myxomas. Unlike adults, neonatal myxomas are more common in males and occur more often on the right side of the heart. Constitutional symptoms such as fever or embolism are rare among neonates. Most patients have favorable outcomes following surgical excision, refuting earlier claims that neonatal myxomas are associated with poor outcomes.

Cardiac metastasis from small cell lung cancer origin: A case report and review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Cardiac metastasis from small cell lung cancer (SCLC) origin is rare, whereas the incidence is anticipated to increase with the extended survival rates.

CASE

We here describe a case report of a 48-year-old male patient diagnosis with SCLC in 2020. In June 2021, he resorted to hospital due to shortness of breath, no obvious changes were found in repeated echocardiography, electrocardiogram and chest computer tomography from June 2021 to September 2021. Due to the persistence of the complaints, cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging was performed in September 30th, 2021, which showed a mass in the right atrioventricular groove. The patient underwent pericardiocentesis and small cell carcinoma cells were found in the pericardial effusion, confirming the diagnosis of cardiac metastasis.

CONCLUSION

Patients with a history of SCLC who develop new cardiac symptoms of unknown etiology should undergo imaging studies such as CMR. The importance of CMR for patients with SCLC is highlighted. The literature regarding metastatic cardiac tumors is reviewed.

The Interventricular Septum: Structure, Function, Dysfunction, and Diseases

Vertebrates developed pulmonary circulation and septated the heart into venous and arterial compartments, as the adaptation from aquatic to terrestrial life requires more oxygen and energy. The interventricular septum (IVS) accommodates the ventricular portion of the conduction system and contributes to the mechanical function of both ventricles. Conditions or diseases that affect IVS structure and function (e.g., hypertrophy, defects, other) may lead to ventricular pump failure and/or ventricular arrhythmias with grave consequences. IVS structure and function can be evaluated today using current imaging techniques. Effective therapies can be provided in most cases, although definitions of underlying etiologies may not always be easy, particularly in the elderly due to overlap between genetic and acquired causes of IVS hypertrophy, the most common being IVS abnormality. In this review, state-of-the-art information regarding IVS morphology, physiology, physiopathology, and disease is presented.