Fatal cor pulmonale caused by pulmonary tumor microembolism in a patient with occult gastric cancer.
BACKGROUND
A fatal pulmonary tumor microembolism is rarely caused by an occult gastric cancer.


RESULTS
We report the case of a 40-year-old woman who died after 3 days of progressive dyspnea, cough, and pulmonary hypertension. Postmortem examination demonstrated the presence of an occult diffuse-type gastric carcinoma, which had caused emboli in about 80% of small pulmonary arteries and arterioles. Despite an interatrial defect in the fossa ovalis, no parenchymal metastases were documented.


CONCLUSIONS
Pulmonary tumor microembolism may be suspected in patients complaining of unexplained progressive dyspnea and who develop acute or subacute cor pulmonale.
Corradi
Domenico
D
Section of Pathology, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Parma, 43100 Parma, Italy. domenico.corradi@unipr.it
Mormandi
Francesca
F
Tanzi
Giulia
G
Ricci
Roberto
R
Bini
Paola
P
Giuliotti
Sara
S
Zompatori
Maurizio
M
D000328:Adult; D018279:Carcinoma, Signet Ring Cell / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008168:Lung / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D008207:Lymphatic Metastasis; D011655:Pulmonary Embolism / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D011660:Pulmonary Heart Disease / Q000209:etiology*; D013274:Stomach Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed