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Case Reports
. 2021 Jun 7:22:e932239.
doi: 10.12659/AJCR.932239.

A Case of Stage II Ascending Colon Cancer with Cardiac Tamponade Due to Pericardial Metastasis

Hiroyuki Sawada  1 , Kazuhiro Toyota  1 , Keishi Hakoda  1 , Ryotaro Kajiwara  1 , Ryuichi Hotta  1 , Masashi Inoue  1 , Ichiro Ohmori  1 , Kazuaki Miyamoto  2 , Seiji Sadamoto  1 , Tadateru Takahashi  1   3
Affiliations
Case Reports

A Case of Stage II Ascending Colon Cancer with Cardiac Tamponade Due to Pericardial Metastasis

Hiroyuki Sawada et al. Am J Case Rep. .

Abstract

BACKGROUND Malignant tumors, such as lung and breast cancers, can metastasize to the heart. However, cardiac metastasis rarely occurs in colorectal cancer. Cardiac metastasis cases are typically asymptomatic and rarely cause cardiac tamponade. Heart failure due to systemic metastasis is a terminal symptom; therefore, cardiac metastasis is rarely diagnosed when a patient is alive. We report a case of stage II ascending colon cancer with cardiac tamponade due to pericardial metastasis. CASE REPORT The patient was a 63-year-old woman who underwent laparoscopic ileocecal resection for ascending colon cancer. The final pathological diagnosis was stage IIB cancer. At the time of surgery, computed tomography scans revealed no metastases to the regional lymph nodes, liver, lungs, and other organs. The patient was then referred for dyspnea 5 months after the surgery. Computed tomography revealed large quantities of pericardial effusion, and the patient was diagnosed with cardiac tamponade. The symptoms were alleviated after pericardiocentesis. Cytological examination of the pericardial fluid confirmed the diagnosis of adenocarcinoma, and by extension, cardiac metastasis of the ascending colon cancer. Anticancer agents were recommended, but the patient opted for palliative treatment. CONCLUSIONS We report a rare case of ascending colon cancer with pericardial metastasis. The advancements in chemotherapy have made the prognosis of colorectal cancer more favorable. The prevalence of pericardial metastasis is expected to increase as well. As such, it is necessary to discuss similar case encounters and establish appropriate treatment.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interest: None declared

Conflict of Interest

None.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Chest X-ray – confirmation of cardiomegaly.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
CT – observation of pericardial effusion.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Cytological examination of the pericardial fluid – identification of adenocarcinoma cells.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
CT/FDG-PET – observation of pericardial thickening. There was FDG accumulation in the same site. FDG – fluorodeoxyglucose.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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