Surgical and multitreatment approach in a case of primary cardiac angiosarcoma

INTRODUCTION AND IMPORTANCE: Primary cardiac angiosarcoma is extremely rare, and its prognosis remains poor, with a mean life expectancy of only a few months. Here, we report a case of primary cardiac angiosarcoma. CASE PRESENTATION: A 49-year-old Japanese woman with a month-long history of dyspnea was admitted to our hospital for pericardial effusion. Chest computed tomography and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging showed a mass in the right atrium. The patient underwent surgical resection of the tumor, and the pathological diagnosis was angiosarcoma. The patient received radiotherapy after surgery. Six months following surgery, she underwent chemotherapy following the diagnosis of lung metastasis. The patient died 18 months after the initial diagnosis. CLINICAL DISCUSSION: Cardiac angiosarcoma is rare and difficult to diagnose early because it is associated with few symptoms. Moreover, there are currently no established guidelines for the treatment of this disease because of its rarity and sparse descriptive literature Therefore, multidisciplinary therapies should be considered, including surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy. CONCLUSION: There is no standard treatment for cardiac angiosarcoma, but surgical resection, chemotherapy, radiation therapy, or a combination of these therapies may be useful.