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Updated: Mar 13, 2026
Cardiac Magnetic Resonance for the Evaluation of Suspected Cardiac Thrombus: Conventional and Emerging Techniques
Published on: June 11, 2019
Left atrium mass in a patient with breast cancer: a case report
Yu Sugawara1, Ryuji Okamura2, Shigeki Taniguchi3
1Department of Internal Medicine, Yamatotakada Municipal Hospital, 1-1, Isono-Cho, Yamatotakada-Shi, Nara-Ken, Japan. waegurorunsra@hotmail.co.jp.
Background:
Left atrial thrombi have traditionally been treated with heparin and warfarin, and many physicians have limited experience with direct oral anticoagulants such as apixaban. Furthermore, the efficacy of apixaban for the treatment of left atrial thrombi has not been established. We experienced a case of left atrial thrombus formation before breast cancer surgery, which was resolved by apixaban.
Case Presentation:
Computed tomography for a 74-year-old Japanese woman with breast cancer incidentally revealed a left atrial mass with a root before the breast surgery. The mass was surgically removed and determined to be a thrombus. Before the breast surgery, transthoracic echocardiography was performed again, and the left atrial thrombus had recurred within only 14 days. It resolved after administration of apixaban.
Conclusions:
A left atrial thrombus might recur within a very short time. Apixaban might be an alternative to warfarin in patients with breast cancer and left atrial thrombus.
