Article Text
Abstract
Primary cardiac lymphoma (PCL) is a rare neoplasm involving the heart, pericardium or both. Patients with PCL have a median survival of approximately 7 months based on literature. We report a unique case of a 63-year-old woman presenting with worsening exertional dyspnoea and symptoms of superior vena cava obstruction. Investigations revealed a large right atrial (RA) tumour with obstructive features. In the past, PCL was frequently diagnosed at postmortem but with modern imaging and biopsy techniques, this allows early diagnosis and treatment of this rapidly fatal disease. Our patient had a trans-jugular venous biopsy of the RA mass under trans-oesophageal echocardiography guidance. This confirmed the diagnosis of PCL. She subsequently completed seven cycles of chemotherapy and is currently in remission 20 months after diagnosis.
- cardiovascular medicine
- oncology
Statistics from Altmetric.com
Footnotes
Contributors AXFC and SLL contributed to the clinical care, analysis and interpretation of data. The corresponding author, AXFC, is responsible for drafting the article. SLL reviewed and revised the important intellectual content. ZZ provided specialist input on histological analysis, H&E and IHC images of histological specimens. Final approval of the version for publication was agreed upon by all authors and are accountable for the article regarding its accuracy and integrity.
Funding The authors have not declared a specific grant for this research from any funding agency in the public, commercial or not-for-profit sectors.
Competing interests None declared.
Patient consent for publication Obtained.
Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.