A case report of left renal cell carcinoma with tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium

A case report of left renal cell carcinoma with tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium is reported. A 76-year-old woman was found to have a left renal tumor with tumor thrombus extending into the inferior vena cava and right atrium by computed tomographic-scanning. Left nephrectomy and removal of an intra-atrial tumor thrombus were performed under a cardiopulmonary bypass. The post-operative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged from the hospital 22 days postoperatively. The pathological diagnosis was clear cell carcinoma. After surgery, the patient received interferon-gamma. However, the patient developed lung metastases 26 months after the operation and is currently being observed while receiving interferon-alpha.     

Application of cardiopulmonary bypass for resection of renal cell carcinoma and adrenocortical carcinoma extending into the right atrium

AIM: The application of cardiopulmonary bypass to atrial involvement represents an important advance that has improved the safety and technical efficacy of a difficult surgical undertaking. Our experiences of the management of extended thrombi into the right atrium in patients with retroperitoneal malignancy using a cardiopulmonary bypass were discussed. METHODS: Data were reviewed for five patients (two men and three women; mean age, 60.4 years; range, 49-79 years) with retroperitoneal tumors displaying intracardiac tumor extension. Tumors originated in the right kidney in four patients, and in left adrenal gland in one patient. Cardiopulmonary bypass was used in all cases. RESULTS: Mean total blood loss was 6059 mL. Mean operative time was 14.7 h. No intra- or postoperative complications due to surgical technique were encountered, and no significant bleeding occurred during incision of the inferior vena cava or after removal of tumor thrombus. The follow-up period ranged from 3 to 20 months with a mean of 12.6 months. Of the five patients, three died of metastatic diseases, one died of liver dysfunction and one remains disease free as of 18 months postoperatively. CONCLUSIONS: Our experience indicates that this procedure can be safely used for atrial involvement. Although superior long-term survival cannot be shown yet, favorable early results and a lack of perioperative complications were identified.     

Anesthetic management of a patient with hepatocellular carcinoma with tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium

A 58 year-old male was scheduled for surgery of his hepatic cancer. Tumor invaded to the right atrium through the inferior vena cava. The operative method of removing the tumor in the right atrium was scheduled under extracorporeal circulation after the left lobe hepatectomy. Since there was a tumor in the right atrium, central venous pressure monitoring could not be reliable. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) was employed in order to detect the part of the tumor flowing into the pulmonary artery or occluding the tricuspid valve. Due to massive blood loss during hepatectomy, the capacity in the right atrium decreased and the tumor was often about to engage the tricuspid valve. After the rapid fluid therapy, the right atrium capacity increased preventing the engagement of the tumor. TEE was useful not only to observe the movement of the tumor in the right atrium but also to monitor the circulating blood volume.     

Renal angiomyolipoma with a tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium--a case report]

We present a case of spontaneous rupture of renal angiomyolipoma with a tumor thrombus extending from the right renal vein and inferior vena cava to the right atrium. A 41-year-old woman, previously in good health, was referred to our hospital with right flank pain. Computed tomography showed fat densities in both tumor and thrombus. Other imaging examinations also demonstrated a large right renal mass (18 cm in diameter), a long tumor thrombus (13 cm in length) and a small left renal tumor (1.5 cm in diameter). Right nephrectomy and en-bloc removal of the intra caval and intracardiac tumor thrombus were performed on cardiopulmonary bypass. It was pathologically diagnosed as an angiomyolipoma without tuberous sclerosis. At present, three years after surgery the patient is doing well, showing neither metastasis nor increase of the left renal angiomyolipoma. To our knowledge, our case seems to be the 3rd case report of renal angiomyolipoma with a tumor thrombus extending to the right atrium. We conclude that renal angiomyolipoma even with an intra cardiac tumor thrombus can be resected safely and successfully.     

Renal cell carcinoma extending into the right atrium; report of a case

A 62-year-old male was diagnosed through abdominal ultrasonography, with right renal cell carcinoma extending into the inferior vena cava. Surgery was performed because echocardiography revealed the tumor to have reached the right atrium. The portion of the tumor situated in the right atrium was resected under the extracorporeal circulation. Distal part of inferior vena cava was resected with the tumor included. The tumor remaining in the confluence of hepatic veins was removed from the incised end of the inferior vena cava and was detached from the venous wall. Postoperative abdominal echography revealed a small additional tumor mass in hepatic veins. Although this mass was considered to be a remnant of the intravenous tumor, an additional surgical procedure was judged to be impossible. In retrospect, an additional long-axis incision on the inferior vena cava might have enabled us to catch the remnant of the tumor thrombus in the hepatic vein.     

Anesthetic management of a patient with hepatocellular carcinoma with tumor thrombosis extending into the right atrium

We report a patient with hepatocellular carcinoma whose tumor thrombus was extending into the right atrium. A 55-year-old man underwent extended anterior segmental hepatectomy and removal of the tumor thrombus in the right atrium under cardiopulmonary bypass and general anesthesia using sevoflurane, nitrous oxide and oxygen. End-tidal carbon dioxide was closely monitored to detect pulmonary tumor emboli during the surgery. Intravenous fluid and blood transfusion in large volumes were necessary to avoid circulatory derangement.     

Adrenal cortical carcinoma with vena cava tumor thrombus requiring cardiopulmonary bypass for resection

We believe this is the fifteenth case report of adrenal cortical carcinoma with tumor thrombus to the vena cava, and the fourth reported case of a left-side tumor propagating thrombus to the vena cava. The patient underwent successful resection which required cardiopulmonary bypass. The caval tumor thrombus was very friable and gelatinous, unlike many renal cell thrombi, and required special surgical considerations.     

Adrenal cortex carcinoma with right atrium involvement. Surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass

INTRODUCTION: Primary adrenal carcinoma is a low incidence tumour. About 50% are functional and the majority result in Cushing's syndrome, while detection of the rest is commonly incidental. Surgical management is through radical surgery. CASE REPORT: A 36-year old female who presented with a one-month old abdominal pain in the hypochondrium and the right lumbar fossa. Physical examination found a discretely painful mobile mass. Adrenal hormones values were normal. Ultrasound and CT studies detected a 14-cm adrenal tumour with cava vein thrombosis up to the right auricle. The surgical procedure included laparotomy, liver mobilisation and cardiopulmonary by-pass. The thrombus was completely removed by auriculotomy. Therapy with mitotane and 5-fluorouracil was then instituted. Thirteen months after surgery the patient is asymptomatic and tumour free. REMARKS: Dissemination of adrenal tumours to veins ranges between 6 to 30%. Clinical manifestation of cava vein and auricle involvement is variable but it may develop with no symptoms due to collateral circulation. Pre-operative diagnosis is critical to plan for adequate surgical approach. Ultrasound and computerised tomography can adequately diagnose the process, but nuclear magnetic resonance provides more information on the thrombus extension and location. In the absence of node spread, local extension, or invasion of the cava wall prognosis is similar to that of patients with no vein involvement. The best therapeutic option is surgery with removal of the lesion and cardiopulmonary by-pass. Survival at 5 years is 43%. Post-operative administration of chemotherapy with mitotane is a useful and recommendable choice.     

Hepatocellular carcinoma with right atrial tumor thrombus: Report of a case

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with a tumor thrombus (TT) extending into the right atrium is generally regarded as a terminal-stage condition. We report a case of long-term survival following treatment of this complication with en bloc hepatectomy and resection of the thrombus under cardiopulmonary bypass. Our review of 19 similar cases reported in the literature found the following: that lung metastasis, the most critical prognostic factor, occurred in only 5 (27.8%) patients; that postoperative survival ranged from 18 days to 56 months, with a median survival of 11 months; and that 7 (38.9%) patients showed no signs of recurrence, with 4 (21.1%) surviving longer than 2 years. Thus, to prevent sudden death and extend the survival of patients with HCC and TT extending into the right atrium, we advocate simultaneous en bloc resection performed under cardiopulmonary bypass, provided distant metastasis and recurrence in the remnant liver are controlled.     

Removal of renal cell carcinoma extending into the right atrium: report of a case]

A 65-year old man presented with a seven-month history of macrohematuria and left back pain. Abdominal ultrasonography, enhanced computed tomographic (CT) scanning, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), selective renal angiography and vena cavography revealed a left renal tumor extending into the inferior vena cava and right atrium. Surgery was performed using the cardiopulmonary bypass and the whole tumor was resected grossly except for the tumor invading into the lumbar vein. The patient recovered promptly but died from cancer metastasis six months after operation.     

Resection of advanced stage malignant retroperitoneal neoplasms with tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium: Report of four cases

Surgery for retroperitoneal neoplasms with a tumor thrombus extension into the right atrium is challenging. This study reviewed four surgical cases of advanced stage malignant neoplasms with the tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium. The malignant neoplasms involved the kidney in two patients, and the liver and adrenal gland in one each. The tumor thrombus was removed through a longitudinal cavotomy and right atriotomy in all cases. The inferior vena cava reconstruction was performed by directly closing it in one patient and by pericardial patch suturing in another. Cardiopulmonary bypass was used for all procedures and a Pringle maneuver was used to reduce bleeding from the liver in three. There was no perioperative or hospital death. Two of the four with renal cell carcinoma were alive 7 and 13 months after the surgery. One with hepatocellular carcinoma died of recurrent malignancy after 4 months, while the patient with an adrenal carcinoma remained disease free after surgery. These cases indicate the safety of the present procedure. Although the long-term results are still unknown, there were favorable early results and a lack of perioperative complications. Surgical challenges in resecting an intracardiac extension of retroperitoneal malignancy require close cooperation among the attending urologist, and both gastrointestinal and cardiovascular surgeons.     

Experience with an elective vacuum assisted cardiopulmonary bypass in the surgical treatment of renal neoplasms extending into the right atrium

PURPOSE: We evaluate the results of an elective cardiopulmonary bypass conceived to minimize the surgical risk related to its use with temporary circulatory arrest and deep hypothermia in the treatment of patients with renal tumor extending into the right atrium. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From July 1996 to December 2000, 19 patients with renal neoplasm and venous involvement were admitted to our department. Three patients 4, 57 and 58 years old with a right (2) and left (1) renal tumor extending into the right atrium underwent radical nephrectomy and tumor thrombus removal using a normothermic cardiopulmonary bypass. The bypass circuit was connected with a vacuum assisted venous drainage giving a negative pressure of 20 to 40 mm. Hg. Neither circulatory arrest nor hypothermia was used. Tumor thrombus was extracted through a longitudinal "cavotomy" and removed along with the kidney. RESULTS: Total cardiopulmonary bypass time was 14, 19 and 22 minutes, respectively. No intraoperative or postoperative complications due to surgical technique occurred. No significant bleeding was observed at the time of cavotomy and all neoplastic tissue was removed. Pathological examination documented renal cell carcinoma in 2 cases and Wilms tumor in 1. All the patients are alive 30, 42 and 15 months, respectively, after the operation. CONCLUSIONS: Normothermic cardiopulmonary bypass with vacuum assisted venous drainage makes circulatory arrest and hypothermia unnecessary and avoids the potential complications associated with these procedures. With respect to veno-venous shunts this technique guarantees complete surgical control of the thrombus and avoids the need for extensive dissection of the retrohepatic vena cava and Pringle maneuver.     

Successful resection of cecal hepatic metastasis extending into the right side of the heart under cardiopulmonary bypass

Resection is the best hope for the cure of colorectal metastasis to the liver. However, surgery is indicated for only a few patients, especially those who have major vascular involvement. We report a 55-year-old woman with a liver metastasis from the cecum that showed a tumor thrombus in the right side of the heart. She had undergone laparoscopic right hemicolectomy for cecal cancer 6 months before, and presented with a palpable mass in the epigastrium. Abdominal ultrasonography, computed tomography, hepatic angiogram, and echocardiography showed a huge mass on the left lobe of the liver, with a tumor thrombus which extended to the right ventricle through the left hepatic vein and inferior vena cava. Tumor thrombectomy, through a right atriotomy, was success-fully performed under cardiopulmonary bypass, followed by left hepatic lobectomy. The patient's postoperative course was uneventful. Received for publication on Oct. 5, 1998; accepted on Jan. 11, 1999     

Treatment of renal cell carcinoma extending into the right atrium with extra-corporeal circulation using high-grade hypothermia: a case report

A 68-year-old woman underwent surgical treatment for renal cell carcinoma associated with tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium. Although the tumor thrombus reached the level of the right atrium, there were no other apparent metastases. Combination therapy with interferon alfa plus tegafur/uracil (UFT) was attempted with the expectation of reducing the tumor thrombus, but there was no change. Successful management was achieved with right radical nephrectomy, right auriculotomy, and partial cavectomy using cardiopulmonary bypass under high-grade hypothermia. After removal of the tumor and thrombus, blood loss was 13,900 ml during the patient's recovery. She had mild heart failure for about two weeks after the operation, but recovered. She was discharged on the 40th day after the operation. Proper preparation for blood transfusion is the key point of this operation.     

Renal cell carcinoma with caval thrombus extending to the right atrium in a horseshoe kidney: a unique surgical challenge

The surgical anatomy of a horseshoe kidney (HK) is unique in many ways, ranging from its anomalous circulation, shared renal parenchyma between the right and left renal moieties, and its anterior renal pelvis, to the fact that it obscures access to the vena cava and aorta. While renal cell carcinomas (RCCs) are known to occur in HKs, the surgical approach to an RCC with tumour thrombus extending to the right atrium has not been reported in the literature. We report an unusual presentation of RCC and the technical aspects of our successful experience with managing RCC of a HK extending to the inferior vena cava and right atrium.     

The removal of renal carcinoma thrombus extending to the right atrium by means of extracorporeal circulation: report of a case]

A case of renal cell carcinoma with a tumor thrombus extending to the right atrium was reported. A 70-year-old woman was admitted with a diagnosis of right renal tumor which had been detected on a routine abdominal ultrasonography. MRI revealed a tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium through the inferior vena cava. A transesophageal echocardiogram confirmed that the tumor extended into the right atrium, and was not adherent to the inferior vena cava and the atrium. Right nephrectomy and removal of the tumor thrombus were performed using extracorporeal circulation. Temporary occlusion of portal venous and hepatic arterial inflow was effective in reducing blood loss. She has been doing well, and there has been no evidence of recurrence during 18 month postoperatively.     

Surgical resection of adrenal carcinoma extending into the vena cava, right atrium and ventricle: case report and review of the literature

A case of adrenal carcinoma with the tumor thrombus extending into the right atrium and right ventricle is reported. A 46-year-old man was admitted because of abdominal distention and back pain. Angiogram, venacavography, dynamic CT, cardio-echogram and determinations of blood concentration of hormones disclosed a huge non-functional right adrenal tumor and its thrombus having extended into the right atrium and ventricle via the right adrenal vein. Right adrenalectomy and nephrectomy were followed by simultaneous removal of the tumor thrombus. The resected tumor was 14 X 11 X 7 cm in size and 880 g. The thrombus was 90 g. Pathohistological diagnosis of sarcomatoid adrenocortical carcinoma was made. The patient was discharged three weeks after operation and had been remained asymptomatic for 5 months. He died of the recurrence of the tumor on the 206th postoperative day. In the review of English and Japanese literature, 61 cases of malignant tumors extending into the right atrium were analyzed, among which only one case was an adrenal tumor. From this survey, it seems that aggressive resection would provide better survival, and a surgical excision with a use of cardiopulmonary bypass is worth trying for such conditions.