Primary cardiac tumours: eighteen years of surgical experience on 21 patients.

Abstract

The results suggest that complete surgical resection of primary cardiac tumours prolongs symptom-free survival and is associated with a low recurrence rate. Benign primary cardiac tumours have an excellent prognosis in the adult population compared with in the pediatric population (93% versus 50% survival, respectively, in the present cohort). Furthermore, conservative leaflet resection with valve repair of valve myxomas, rather than radical excision and valve replacement, should be strongly considered. Early identification and diagnosis of primary cardiac tumours are necessary for expeditious surgical resection if a cure is desired, especially when encountering malignant primary cardiac sarcomas.