What symptoms can a person with cancer near the heart expect? The signs and symptoms of cancer near the heart depend on the location and size of the tumour. Some people experience sweating, chest pain, dizziness, and shortness of breath. Malignant heart tumours can also cause fluid to collect around the outer layer of the heart, obstructing blood flow. These tumours may cause arrhythmias, sudden death, and blackouts.
While most cancers that affect the heart originate elsewhere in the body, it is not unusual for them to grow into the heart itself. While many tumors that begin in other areas of the body can affect the heart, most of them start in the pericardium and spread throughout the body. Those tumors may also originate in a blood vessel and migrate to the heart. Some cancers that can affect the heart include melanoma, lung cancer, esophageal cancer, and breast cancer.
In some cases, a tumor in the heart can be surgically removed, but this is difficult when it has spread to the heart. If it has reached the heart’s interior, it may be necessary to undergo heart transplant surgery. Unfortunately, heart transplants are not performed often in children and adults. Because of the high risks of heart transplantation, the treatment of a cancer near the heart depends on the location and size of the tumor and the extent of metastasis.
Because cardiac tumors can be difficult to detect, the first step in identifying a cancer near the heart is to know the symptoms. Although they are uncommon, they often have a similar symptom profile to many other disorders. Some symptoms of a heart tumor include palpitations, weakness, and faintness. The symptoms may also be caused by another condition, such as unexoma or myxoma. Oftentimes, primary heart tumors are detected postmortem after cancer has spread to other parts of the body.
While the cause of heart cancer remains unknown, it is difficult to treat and recurrences are common. Treatment for cancer near the heart aims to control symptoms and improve quality of life. Ultimately, the goal of heart cancer treatment is to cure the disease once and for all. Although the disease is rarely curable, researchers are continually searching for more effective diagnostic methods that may reduce the risk of secondary tumors in the heart. They hope that the advancement of medicine will help identify patients with heart cancer at an early stage.
Myxomas are the most common cancer near the heart. Nearly half of all heart tumors are noncancerous. They are more common in women and are passed down in families. Myxomas are curable only through surgery, but they can recur if they are not removed. Fibromas, on the other hand, are most often diagnosed in infants and children. Most of these tumors are benign, although there have been reports of familial cases of the disease.
