PRIMARY CARDIAC TUMORS - A CLINICAL-EXPERIENCE OF 12 YEARS

From January 1980 through December 1992, we performed operations on 31 patients with primary cardiac tumors. There were 12 male and 19 femal e patients; the ages ranged from 7 to 71 years (mean, 47.7 +/- 18.3 ye ars); 29 were adults and 2 were children. Twenty-six (83.9%) of the tu mors were benign, and 5 were malignant. The most frequently encountere d benign tumor was myxoma (22), and the most frequently encountered ma lignant tumor was fibrosarcoma (4). The most common symptoms at clinic al presentation were those associated with cardiac insufficiency or em bolization. Definition of the tumor was accomplished in all patients b y echocardiography, cardiac angiography was performed in only 4 patien ts. Afl patients survived the operative procedure and were discharged from the hospital, but 4 patients with malignant disease died within 3 0 days. Follow-up for myxoma patients ranged from 16 to 151 months (me an, 68.5 +/- 36 months). Among the 26 patients with benign tumors, the re was 1 death, 72 months after the surgical procedure, of right-heart failure due to recurrence of the myxoma.