Venous thromboses of upper limbs are more frequently associated with occult cancer as compared with those of lower limbs

Three hundred and forty-three consecutive patients with deep vein thrombosi s (DVT) were investigated for the possible presence of occult or undiagnose d cancer, of whom 305 patients had DVT of the lower limbs whereas 38 had DV T of the upper limbs. Cancer was diagnosed during a 12-month follow-up in n ine patients with DVT of the upper limbs (23.7%) and in 34 patients with DV T of the lower limbs (11.1%). The difference was statistically significant. Furthermore, it was shown that the majority of cancers (seven of nine) in the case of DVT of the upper limbs were discovered during the first meek of hospital admission. In contrast, in the case of DVT of lower limbs, only e ight of 34 cancers were discovered during the initial investigation. Lung c ancer and lymphomas represented the majority of cancers associated with upp er limb venous thrombosis (seven of nine). In the case of DVT of the lower limbs, cancers were heterogeneous; however, 12 of 34 were cancers of the co lon or prostate. (C) 1999 Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.