Malignant Pericardial Effusions

Abstract

Cancers can directly affect the pericardium (pericardial tumors, cardiac tumors, direct invasion of nearby cancer, or pericardial metastasis of distant tumors) or indirectly (as side effects of radiotherapy, chemotherapy and secondary immunodepression of opportunistic infections such as viral or bacterial pericarditis). In contrast to pericardial effusions of other aetiologies, malignant pericardial effusions present an increased risk of rapid fluid accumulation in pericardial sac with the onset of cardiac tamponade. Currently, in the case of malignant pericardial effusions, available therapeutic methods are pericardiocentesis, subxiphoidal pericardiotomy, pleural- pericardial window, peritoneal-pericardial window, and pericardiectomy. We present here a short uptodate of surgical approaches for malignant pericardial effusions.