Management of a Right Heart Intracavitary Thrombus in Transit in a Patient With Gastric Cancer in a Resource-Limited Setting: A Case Report

Cureus. 2023 Aug 8;15(8):e43133. doi: 10.7759/cureus.43133. eCollection 2023 Aug.

Abstract

A right atrial thrombus is an unusual source of imminent massive saddle pulmonary embolism (PE) . A hypercoagulable state secondary to gastric cancer (GC) can result in deep vein thrombosis (DVT) with a resultant right-sided heart thrombus in transit. Here, we present a case of a young male patient from Honduras with DVT and multiple venous thrombi extending from the external iliac veins to the suprahepatic left vein, inferior vena cava, and right atrium of the heart, secondary to a hypercoagulable state from GC, adenocarcinoma type. We describe the approach of treating a right heart intracavitary thrombus with imminent risk for saddle PE and sudden cardiac death with thrombolysis through a central venous catheter (CVC) in a resource-limited setting.

Keywords: cvc thrombolysis; gastric malignancy; high-risk pulmonary embolism; surgical thrombectomy; thrombus in transit.

Publication types

  • Case Reports