Cardiac manifestations of noncardiac tumors. Part I: Direct effects

Cardiac manifestations of secondary tumors of the heart may exert their effects directly by endocardial, myocardial, epicardial, or cavitary deposits (metastatic lesions), indirectly via tumor products such as in carcinoma, or mediated by therapy (chemotherapy, radiation) to treat the primary neoplasm. Part I of this review summarizes the frequency of metastatic cardiac involvement by various tumors and discusses pericardial manifestations (effusion, tamponade, constriction), one of the most common consequences of direct cardiac involvement by secondary tumors.