Primary cardiac tumors: experience at the University of Minnesota

Our plain-English summary of Primary cardiac tumors: experience at the University of Minnesota, by J.E. Molina, J.E. Edwards, H.B. Ward (The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon, 1990).

The study

• Authors: J.E. Molina, J.E. Edwards, H.B. Ward
• Journal: The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon
• Published: 1990;38 Suppl 2:183-91
• Cited by: 127 articles, as counted by NIH iCite
• Read it: PubMed · Publisher

Abstract

A review of all primary cardiac tumors seen at the University of Minnesota or entered in the Registry of Cardiovascular Disease, affiliated with the University of Minnesota, between 1959 and 1989. Of a total of 124 primary cardiac tumors, 103 (83%) were benign and 21 (17%) were malignant. Atrial myxomas (51 cases) accounted for 42% of all tumors and 50% of benign neoplasias. The remaining 51 benign tumors were, in order of frequency: rhabdomyomas, 14 (13%), papillomas, 12 (11%), fibromas, 9 (9%), hamartomas, (4%), teratomas (2%), lipomas (2%), mesotheliomas (2%), fibroelastomas, hemangiomas, glomangiomas, and a few others. The 21 malignant tumors, all sarcomas, were, in order of frequency: rhabdomyosarcomas, 6 (29%), angiosarcomas, 4 (19%), myxosarcomas, 3 (14%), fibrosarcomas, 2 (10%), and one each leiomyosarcoma, reticulum cell sarcoma, and liposarcoma. There were 3 cases of spindle cell sarcoma (14%) originating in the great vessels: 1 in the pulmonary artery and 2 in the aorta. The prognosis of the resected benign tumors was good, with no complications of recurrences for up to 15 years of follow-up. Tumors that could not be excised included mostly rhabdomyomas, in newborns, and cavernous hemangiomas involving most of the heart, with poor prognosis. Malignant tumors of the heart had a very poor prognosis, even when operated on promptly after diagnosis. The mean survival time of these patients was 5 months after resection, even when followed with chemotherapy and/or radiation; 26% of the tumors had already metastasized at the time of operation. Extensive resections in malignant tumors did not render satisfactory results.

In plain English

This article reviewed all primary cardiac tumors diagnosed or treated at the University of Minnesota, or entered in an affiliated registry, from May 1959 to March 1989. Of 124 tumors, 103 were benign and 21 were malignant. Myxoma was the most common type: 51 cases, 50% of benign and 42% of all tumors. Only 1 of 36 surgically removed myxomas recurred, 4 years later. Of 14 rhabdomyomas, 9 were in infants under 2 weeks old. The series included 2 mesotheliomas, classed as rare benign tumors, in the heart's A-V node. The article does not discuss asbestos or any other exposure. All 21 malignant tumors were sarcomas, 3 of them arising in the aorta or pulmonary artery rather than the heart itself; 26% had already spread when diagnosed. Of 9 patients operated on for malignant tumors, 8 survived and received chemotherapy. Their mean survival was 6 months (range 2 to 9); the article's summary says 5 months. The authors concluded that resected benign tumors had a good prognosis, while malignant tumors had a very poor prognosis even with prompt surgery.

We wrote this plain-English summary from the full article with the help of AI, and a second AI model checked each sentence against the article. It is not the authors' wording; the abstract and the article are their own account.

What the study did and found

• Design: retrospective review (case series) of primary cardiac tumors from one institution and an affiliated registry
• Who was studied: 124 primary cardiac tumors (103 benign, 21 malignant) diagnosed or treated at the University of Minnesota or entered in the Registry for Cardiovascular Diseases, May 1959 to March 1989
• Main results:
  • Myxoma was the most frequent tumor: 51 cases, 50% of benign and 42% of all tumors
  • Among 36 surgically resected myxomas, 1 recurred 4 years later at the same site
  • Of 14 rhabdomyomas, 9 were found in infants less than 2 weeks old
  • Two patients had a mesothelioma, listed among the rare benign heart tumors and located in the A-V node
  • Three of the malignant tumors were spindle cell sarcomas that originated in the great vessels (2 in the aorta, 1 in the pulmonary artery) rather than in the heart itself
  • Among the 21 malignant tumors (all sarcomas), 26% had already metastasized at diagnosis
  • Of 9 patients operated on for malignant tumors, 8 survived surgery and received chemotherapy; their mean survival was 6 months, range 2 to 9 months
• The authors' conclusion: The authors concluded that resected benign tumors had a good prognosis, while malignant tumors of the heart had a very poor prognosis even when operated on promptly after diagnosis

Topics

Medical terms in this study, explained in our Lexicon: Mesothelioma, Sarcoma, Spindle Cell, Prognosis, Chemotherapy.

Related studies

• Surgical pathology of primary cardiac and pericardial tumors — C. Basso, M. Valente, et al. (1997)
• Malignant primary cardiac tumors. The Cleveland Clinic experience, 1956 to 1986 — P.A. Bear, D.S. Moodie (1987)
• Primary tumors and cysts of the heart and pericardium — H.A. McAllister (1979)
• Cardiac tumors that cause arrhythmias — K.F. Kusano, T. Ohe (2002)
• Unusual primary tumors of the heart — T.J. Vander Salm (2000)
• Cardiac tamponade as the initial manifestation of primary pericardial mesothelioma — M. Stein, A. Neuman, et al. (1995)

Browse more research in The Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeon, or return to medical research.