A Rare Finding: A Left Atrial Cavernous Haemangioma

Background: Cardiac haemangiomas are extremely rare, benign tumours that can arise from any heart structures.Although patients may present with a range of symptoms, the majority are asymptomatic and picked up incidentally on imaging or at autopsy.Echocardiography, cardiac MRI, and coronary angiography are the main imaging modalities for diagnostic work-up.Surgical resection is the recommended treatment, with good post-operative outcomes. Case Presentation:The authors present a case of a 69-year-old female with a subacute history of dyspnoea and weight loss.A CT scan to screen for malignancy revealed a possible filling defect within a prominent left atrial appendage.Further cardiac imaging with transoesophageal echocardiography and cardiac MRI confirmed a mass in the left atrium, which was initially thought to be an atrial myxoma.Following successful surgical resection, histology demonstrated characteristic features of a benign cavernous haemangioma. Conclusion:The authors present a rare finding of a cardiac cavernous haemangioma.Although cardiac haemangiomas are more often found on the right side of the heart, this case demonstrates a left atrial appendage haemangioma, which is very unusual.The importance of multimodality imaging is also demonstrated.Definitive treatment is surgery, with follow-up often involving surveillance transthoracic echocardiography to ensure no recurrence.