A Rare Case of Cervical Cancer Metastasis to the Heart

Abstract

Background: Most cardiac metastases emerge from primary lung, breast, and hematologic malignancies. The clinical manifestations of cardiac metastasis vary depending on tumor location and size. Cardiac metastasis from cervical squamous cell carcinoma is extremely rare and is mostly found on autopsy. We report a case of cervical cancer metastasis to the interventricular septum. Case Summary. This report discusses the case of a 48-year-old woman with interventricular septal metastases, originating from squamous cell carcinoma of the cervix. The woman came to our hospital after experiencing a fainting spell. Her hospital stay was notable for a brief syncopal event during a 30-second asystole episode, which ended spontaneously. Upon awakening, she reported severe chest pain. In response, she was quickly taken to the catheterization laboratory. There, a coronary angiography revealed an 80% blockage in her left anterior descending artery. Two years prior, our patient was diagnosed with invasive squamous cell cervical carcinoma with PET/CT showing no evidence of metastatic disease. A repeat PET/CT scan was done following cardiac catheterization and was significant for a mass along the interventricular septum of the heart. Discussion. Cardiac metastasis from primary cervical squamous cell carcinomas is scarcely reported in medical literature. Among these rare cases, the majority involved the right ventricle, with only three involving the left ventricle. There are no documented instances of metastasis to the interventricular septum. To our knowledge, this would be the first such case.