Sequential therapy of primary cardiac lymphoma with cardiectomy, total artificial heart support, and cardiac transplantation

published online 15 March 2010.

Primary cardiac T-cell lymphoma is an extremely rare entity, with only 3 patients having been reported so far in the literature. We describe the case of a young patient with acute heart failure involving the whole myocardium. The patient successfully underwent emergency cardiectomy, custom-made total artificial heart implantation and heart transplantation, combined with chemotherapy. The problems we encountered with this rare disease are discussed and compared with those of previous studies.

Keywords: cardiac lymphoma, cardiac transplantation, assist device, heart failure, CHOP, cardiectomy

a Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University Medical Center, Regensburg, Germany

b Department of Anesthesia, University Medical Center, Regensburg, Germany

c Department of Hematology and Internal Oncology, University Medical Center, Regensburg, Germany

d Department of Internal Medicine II, University Medical Center, Regensburg, Germany

e Department of Pathology, University Medical Center, Regensburg, Germany

Reprint requests: Michael Ried, MD, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, University Medical Center, Franz-Josef-Strauss-Allee 11, Regensburg 93053, Germany. Telephone: ++49-941-944-9801. Fax: ++49-941-944-9802

PII: S1053-2498(10)00046-X

doi:10.1016/j.healun.2010.01.014

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