PORT-A-CATHS IN CANCER-PATIENTS

We report on 91 patients with cancer who underwent the insertion of 89 venous and 4 hepatic arterial, implanted vascular ports (Port-a-caths ) for periods of up to 33 months (total 1 525 patient-months). There w ere 1 fatal, 9 serious and 8 minor complications in 18 patients which are described and discussed. In this series, complications were more c ommon in younger patients, and infection was rare. Port-a-caths are ex tremely useful for vascular access, and have a low complication rate. However, the occasional occurrence of serious and even fatal complicat ions suggests that the decision to insert a device should be judicious ly weighed.