RECURRENT CARDIAC-TAMPONADE AS FIRST MANIFESTATION OF GASTRIC-CANCER

Malignant pericardial effusion is an uncommon disorder and is usually caused by far advanced lung cancer, breast cancer, lymphoma and leukae mia. Pericardial effusion in recurrent gastric cancer has been reporte d in only three patients. We report the case of a 53-year-old male wit h sudden onset of dyspnoea, pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade and the unexpected and the asymptomatic concurrence of gastric cancer . Recurrent haemorrhagic pericardial effusion with physical signs of c ardiac tamponade as the initial and only clinical manifestation of gas tric cancer has not been described previously. (C) 1998 Lippincott-Rav en Publishers.