Lethal complication of a rare cardiac tumor

S Siegel; L Claus; T Kamphausen; K Feld

doi:10.1007/s12024-023-00703-5

Lethal complication of a rare cardiac tumor

Forensic Sci Med Pathol. 2023 Sep 16. doi: 10.1007/s12024-023-00703-5. Online ahead of print.

Authors

S Siegel¹, L Claus², T Kamphausen³, K Feld⁴

Affiliations

¹ Institut für Rechtsmedizin des Universitätsklinikum Düsseldorf, Moorenstraße 5, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany. sonja.siegel@med.uni-duesseldorf.de.
² Institut für Pathologie am St. Elisabeth-Krankenhaus Köln, Cologne, Germany.
³ Institut für Rechtsmedizin der Uniklinik Köln, Cologne, Germany.
⁴ Institut für Rechts- und Verkehrsmedizin des Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.

PMID: 37715931
DOI: 10.1007/s12024-023-00703-5

Abstract

Cardiac tumors, especially malignant ones, are rare and diagnosis is challenging since symptoms manifest late and are often non-specific. Achieving a histological diagnosis prior to resection is also difficult because biopsies often fail to yield conclusive results. Due to the low frequency, no standard treatment protocol exists and the prognosis is poor. We present a case of a cardiac sarcoma, which was found during an autopsy performed with regard to medical malpractice, because the patient died due to a medical intervention. To report cases like this is important to gain more knowledge about possible complications regarding rare diseases.

Keywords: Autopsy; Cardiac tumor; Medical malpractice; Sarcoma.