Cardiac tamponade originating from primary gastric signet ring cell carcinoma

Abstract

A 45-year-old man with dry cough and dyspnea was referred by a medical practitioner for evaluation of heart failure on February 10, 1996. Chest X-ray revealed increased cardiothoracic ratio, and ultrasonographic echocardiography disclosed massive pericardial effusion with right ventricular collapse. Cardiac tamponade was diagnosed and pericardiocentesis was performed. Ten days after admission, the pleural effusion had become more pronounced, and thoracocentesis was performed. Carcinoembryonic antigen level was elevated in both the pericardial and pleural effusion, and cytology implicated adenocarcinoma, which suggested malignant effusion. Endoscopic study disclosed gastric cancer in the posterior wall of the upper body, and the histopathological diagnosis was signet-ring cell carcinoma. The patient died of respiratory failure on May 2, 1996, and autopsy was performed. The final diagnosis was gastric cancer with pulmonary lymphangitis, pericarditis, and pleuritis carcinomatosa, accompanied by enlargement of mediastinal and paraaortic lymph nodes. Interestingly, the primary signet-ring cell carcinoma of the stomach was situated mostly in the mucosa. Deep in the submucosal region, there was prominent invasion of the intralymphatic vessels, without direct destruction of the mucosa muscularis.