Metastatic Carcinoid Tumor to the Heart, A Dreadful Complication of Neuroendocrine Tumors Yet Under Estimated: About an Observation

Cardiac metastases are uncommon in neuroendocrine tumors (NET). Features of patients with metastatic carcinoid tumor involving the heart have not been well described. Although carcinoid tumors have been described in almost every organ, few reported cases of confirmed cardiac involvement. The overall incidence of myocardial carcinoid metastases among patients with metastatic carcinoid disease is about 4%. There is limited knowledge on the prevalence, clinical presentation, and management of heart metastasis. The availability and increasing use of modern imaging techniques leads to more frequent discovery of rare metastatic sites. Our aim is to further clarify the clinical manifestations of heart metastasis, to increase the knowledge of rare localizations of NET metastasis and insist on the systematic screening of metastatic carcinoid heart disease as an integral part of the echocardiographic evaluation in patients with carcinoid syndrome. We report the case of a 67-year-old male with history of a low differentiated neuroendocrine tumor, presenting with palpitations and dyspnea and which investigations have led to diagnose myocardial metastasis signing the progression of the NETs.

Stereotactic Body Radiation Therapy (SBRT) for a Patient with a Myocardial Metastasis: A Case Report

Metastatic lesions of the heart are rare but have the potential to cause significant morbidity. We describe the case of a patient with renal cell carcinoma who presented with shortness of breath and palpitations and was found to have a metastatic myocardial lesion causing arrythmia. He received stereotactic body radiation therapy (SBRT) to alleviate symptoms and provide local control. SBRT planning was executed using a four-dimensional computed tomography (4DCT) scan to account for respiratory and cardiac motion. Images from a planning magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan and a gated diagnostic MRI scan of the heart were fused with the 4DCT to assist with delineating the tumour. A dose of 30 Gy in five fractions was delivered without incident. The patient’s cardiac MRI at two months post-treatment showed stability of his cardiac lesion. He subsequently died of distant disease progression, without any recurrence of his cardiac symptoms. SBRT may be considered for patients who present with a symptomatic metastatic cardiac lesion.

Added-value of molecular imaging in myocardial metastasis of an ileal neuroendocrine tumour treated with peptide receptor radionuclide therapy: a case report

Background Neuroendocrine tumours (NET) conform a rare type of neoplasm, mostly located in the gastrointestinal tract. They are slow-growing tumours, so at the time of the diagnosis, most patients present with metastatic lesions, mainly in the liver. The myocardium is a rare and important organ for metastasis, in which 68Ga-Dotatate positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET/CT) shows a high diagnostic sensitivity for its detection, contrary to carcinoid valve disease, where anatomic imaging plays a key role, especially the echocardiogram. Case summary A 60-year-old man diagnosed with metastatic progressive ileal NET, who underwent a 68Ga-Dotatate PET/CT prior 177Lu-Dotatate therapy, showed a metastatic lesion in the left ventricle that was undetected in previous studies, such as an Octreoscan® and CT. A transthoracic echocardiogram was performed revealing the existence of a second cardiac lesion, a tricuspid valve carcinoid disease. A cardiac magnetic resonance showed no late gadolinium enhancement. Discussion The 68Ga-Dotatate PET/CT is currently considered the gold standard for assessment and follow-up of NET, including those with rare sites of metastasis such as cardiac infiltration. In this case, it stimulated the persue of possible cardiac involvement, detecting the coexistence of two types of lesions (cardiac metastasis and carcinoid valve disease). Of these, carcinoid valvulopathy develops in 50% of NET cases, while cardiac metastasis (CM) is less frequent (only 5%).

Case Report: Neuroendocrine Tumor With Cardiac Metastasis

Neuroendocrine tumors (NETs), also known as carcinoid tumors, are a heterogeneous group of neoplasms that arise from cells throughout the neuroendocrine system, most commonly arising from the gastrointestinal (GI) tract, lungs, and bronchi. Myocardial carcinoid metastasis is rare with an incidence among metastatic carcinoid patients of 4%. They are generally asymptomatic and detected incidentally. Infiltrative myocardial metastasis secondary to carcinoid tumor is exceedingly rare with only single-digit cases reported in the literature. We report the case of a 65-years-old female with a newly diagnosed ileal neuroendocrine tumor as well as heart failure due to infiltrative myocardial metastasis.