J Korean Soc Echocardiogr.  1995 Jul;3(1):85-96. 10.4250/jkse.1995.3.1.85.

Echocardiographic Findings in Cardiac Tumors

• An WS
• Park HS
• Kam DH
• Son JW
• Dho HK
• Kim MH
• Kim YD
• Kim JS

• KMID: 2410437
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4250/jkse.1995.3.1.85

Abstract

Primary tumors of the heart are uncommon and their incidence in autopsy series ranges from 0.0017 to 0.28 per cent. About 75 per cent of all cardiac tumors are histologically benign and the remainder are malignant. The majority of benign cardiac tumors are myxoma, comprising 30 to 50 per cent of the total cases in most pathological series and the majority of malignant cardiac tumors are sarcoma. But tumors metastatic to the heart are far more common than primary cardiac tumors and actually appear to be increasing in incidence because of prolonged survival of cancer patients. We experienced six cases of cardiac tumors which were diagnosed with echocardiography : 2 hepatocellular carcinoma, 1 malignant melanoma, 1 malignant fibros histiocytoma, 1 lipoma, and 1 myxoma. The mean age of the 3 men and 3 women was 50(range 28 to 71). Two patients with right atrial metastasis from hepatocellular carcinoma and one patient with metastasis from malignant melanoma expired during conservative management. Two benign cardiac tumors(1 lipoma and 1 myxoma) were successfully excised and later follow-up echocardiography showed no signs of tumor recurrence. One patient with biatrial recurrence of malignant histiocytoma was treated medically and expired 4 months later.

Keyword

Cardiac tumors; Echocardiography

MeSH Terms

Autopsy
Carcinoma, Hepatocellular
Echocardiography*
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Heart
Heart Neoplasms*
Histiocytoma
Humans
Incidence
Lipoma
Male
Melanoma
Myxoma
Neoplasm Metastasis
Recurrence
Sarcoma

Figure

• 

  Fig. 1. Parasternal long-axis view of transthoracic echocardiogram showing 4.8 × 3.4cm sized left atrial mass attached to interatrial septum(left upper). M-mode shows tumor shadows with time gap(arrow).

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  Fig. 2. Echocardiographic finding of lipoma. Left: Large right atrial mass attached to atrial septum(Upper) and prolapsed into right ventricle during diastole(Lower). Right: Transesophageal echocardiogram shows 6.2 × 5.5cm sized mass with broad neck and hypertrophied interatrial septum.

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  Fig. 3. Upper left: Extracardiac tumor compressing heart shows well encapsulated yellowish adipose mass with smooth and glistening surface, measuring 13.5×11 ×6cm in dimension. Upper right: Mass resected from right atrium shows well encapsulated nodular adipose mass with gray-whitish fibrous band, measuring 7×4.5×3 cm in dimension. Lower: Microscopic finding reveals lipoma that are composed of typical mature fat cells encapsulated by thin fibrous tissue.

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  Fig. 4. Transesophageal echocardioraphic finding shows multiple round or ovoid masses in both atria, especially filling left atrial cavity with masses and mass impinging posterior mitral valve.

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  Fig. 5. Upper: Parasternal long-axis view shows mass infiltration in the nearly whole right ventricle with obstructing flow. Lower: Apical four-chamber view shows huge infiltrating mass shadow in right ventricle which invades to the interventricular septum and left ventricular wall, and massive pericardial effusion.

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  Fig. 6. Left: Transthoracic view shows large right atrial mass. Right: Transesophageal echocardiogram shows large mass with small daughter mass on right atrium, possibly due to cardiac metastasis.

Reference

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