An Unusual Complication of a 14 Year-old Port-Catheter

Percutaneous subclavian catheters or port-catheters are commonly used for oncology patients who require long-term or continuous intravenous therapy. There are several reported complications related to port-catheters like arterial puncture, pneumothorax and hematoma. We aimed to report an unusual port-catheter case. Our patient was a 45-year-old male who had a port-catheter inserted after the diagnosis of rectum cancer in 2009 and has never showed up for a catheter removal after his chemotheraphy regimen had been completed. The silicone port of the catheter was found to be disintegrated during the catheter removal procedure. Removal was performed but distal 5 cm of the catheter was missing. At the end of the procedure, control X-ray was obtained , but the last part of the catheter could not be visualized. There are reported cases of pinch-off syndrome in the literature however we couldn’t find any such case as we report. Following port-catheter implantation and throughout the course of treatment, patients should be consistently monitored, and an appropriate time should be scheduled for removal. Physicians should be aware of complications and multidisciplinary approaches should be made to avoid serious events and further harm. Keywords: Port-catheter complication, port-catheter removal, port-catheter detachment, pinch-off syndrome