A right ventricular cardiac tumour was incidentally detected in a 61-year-old man during a preoperative examination for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Findings on computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging suggested the differential diagnoses of myxoma, haemangioma and haemangiosarcoma, and it was difficult to identify whether the tumour was benign or malignant. (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography strongly suggested a benign tumour. We enucleated the tumour, because an intraoperative frozen section also strongly suggested a benign origin. After resection, CABG under cardiopulmonary bypass was performed. Histopathological and immunohistochemical analysis indicated a cavernous haemangioma without evidence of malignant tissue. The patient has survived 20 months after surgery with no evidence of tumour recurrence.
Keywords: Cavernous; Haemangioma; Heart ventricles; Positron emission tomography.
© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.