Thrombolysis in patients with a brain tumour

Many potentially eligible patients (30–50%) with acute ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) do not currently receive thrombolytic treatment, partly because of the presence of a contraindication.1 Intracranial haemorrhage (ICH) is a severe complication of thrombolysis, with high morbidity and mortality, and an incidence of approximately 0.75% in the major thrombolytic trials.2 Subgroup analysis of these trials identified advanced age, female sex, use of alteplase (versus streptokinase), and systemic hypertension as risk factors for ICH.2 Intracranial tumours (ICT) are considered an absolute contraindication for thrombolysis because of their association with spontaneous ICH, although no …