A case of pulmonary vein tumor presenting as a left atrial mass

• Published in: The Korean journal of internal medicine 2007-03, Vol.22 (1), p.32-36
• Main Authors: Jeon, Hyo Keun, Kim, Jung Ho, Cho, Gwon Hyun, Kyung, Sun Young, Jeong, Sung Hwan, Chung, Wook Jin, Kim, Na Rae
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Aged; Case Report; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Heart Atria - pathology; Heart Neoplasms - diagnosis; Heart Neoplasms - pathology; Humans; Palliative Care; Pulmonary Veins - pathology; Sacrococcygeal Region - pathology; Thromboembolism - diagnosis; Vascular Neoplasms - diagnosis; Vascular Neoplasms - pathology
• ISSN: 1226-3303; 2005-6648
• DOI: 10.3904/kjim.2007.22.1.32

Primary cardiac tumors are extremely rare and can originate within the heart or be the result of tumor spread from other sites. We report a female patient with a pulmonary vein tumor extending into the left atrium that had a suspicious primary malignant origin with a sacral metastatic carcinoma. The patient was admitted complaining of pain in her buttock area as a result of a sacral tumor. It was believed that the sacral tumor was a metastasis from the imaging study and clinical manifestation. The primary malignant origin was evaluated. The chest CT showed a left atrium thrombus-like lesion without a pulmonary abnormality. After a transesophageal echocardiogram, the patient was diagnosed with a pulmonary vein tumor extending to the left atrium. The patient was given palliative radiotherapy for the sacral pain. Initially, the clinical impression was a metastatic sacral tumor with a thromboembolism of the left atrium. However, this patient was finally diagnosed with a pulmonary vein tumor with a left atrium extension by a transesophageal echocardiogram.