title: Primary lymphoma of the heart. A case report and review of the literature.
abstract: Primary cardiac lymphoma (PCL) is a rare and usually fatal neoplasm, which may cause syncope, arrhythmia, heart failure and pericardial effusion as presenting clinical complaints. A case of PCL in a 72-year-old man with moderate aortic stenosis is presented. The patient was investigated because of pericardial effusion and diagnosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma was obtained by open-chest biopsy of the heart. Fatal ventricular arrhythmia developed the day after the first course of chemotherapy. Clinical presentations and diagnostic approach of this rare tumour are discussed. While chemotherapy is the only effective treatment of PCL, early post-chemotherapy phase should be considered critical in patients with PCL, as suggested by other reported fatal complications in this period.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Sciences and Human Oncology, Clinical Immunology and Haematology Division, Ospedale Mauriziano Umberto I di Torino, University of Torino, Largo Turati 62, 10128, Torino, Italy. grolla@mauriziano.it
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Rolla
authors.forename: Maria Tiziana
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Bertero
authors.forename: Guglielmo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pastena
authors.forename: Nicoletta
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tartaglia
authors.forename: Federica
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Corradi
authors.forename: Riccardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Casabona
authors.forename: Manuela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Motta
authors.forename: Federico
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Caligaris-Cappio
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001145:Arrhythmias, Cardiac / Q000150:complications / Q000628:therapy; D006338:Heart Neoplasms / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D016393:Lymphoma, B-Cell / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology* / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male