title: In vivo diagnosis of cardiac angiosarcoma by endomyocardial biopsy.
abstract: The present-day diagnosis of primary heart tumors is achieved by cardiac imaging and confirmed by morphological examination after surgical resection. We describe the case of a 36-year-old man with a right atrioventricular mass in whom angiosarcoma was diagnosed by transvenous endomyocardial biopsy. Surgery was not attempted because of pulmonary metastases, and the patient died 12 months later. This experience indicates that precise in vivo histological diagnosis of malignant primary cardiac tumor is possible without thoracotomy.
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Pathological Anatomy, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Poletti
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Pathological Anatomy, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cocco
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Pathological Anatomy, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Valente
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fasoli
authors.affiliation: Cardiology, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Chioin
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Pathological Anatomy, University of Padua Medical School, Padua, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Thiene