Upper tract urothelial carcinoma with Oligometastasis to the right ventricle, surgical considerations, and management

Abstract

Right ventricular (RV) metastasis from an upper tract urothelial carcinoma without inferior vena cava or right atrial involvement is an extremely rare event which highlights the heterogeneity of this disease process. We report a case of a 43-year-old man presenting for long-standing hematuria and left flank pain. Computed tomography revealed a left renal mass with para-aortic lymphadenopathy, in addition to a potential mass in the RV. The mass involving the RV was confirmed on subsequent cardiac evaluation with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and echocardiography. After discussion in a multidisciplinary tumor board, the patient underwent a left nephrectomy, regional lymphadenectomy, and excision of metastatic RV tumor with bovine patch reconstruction. Final pathology reported invasive urothelial carcinoma in the left kidney with involvement of regional para-aortic lymph nodes and metastatic tumor in the RV (T4N3M1, AJCC 8th edition). The patient did well postoperatively and completed adjuvant Cisplatin-Gemcitabine systemic chemotherapy. This is an important addition to the literature as it highlights the aggressive and heterogeneous nature of urothelial carcinoma and the utility of cardiac MRI in surgical planning.

Keywords

• cardiac
• metastasis
• renal tumor
• right ventricle
• transitional carcinoma