Deep vein thrombosis and brain metastases. Case report and systematic review

Secondary brain tumours, also known as brain metastasis, are a group of neoplasias which constitute the most frequent type of brain tumour in adults. Up to 20% patients with brain metastasis present venous thromboembolism (VTE). The management of VTE in these patients is complicated by multiple factors including intracranial haemorrhage, among others. We evaluated the case fatality rate (the proportion of patients who die due to a particular condition) of haemorrhage and recurrent VTE in patients with deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and brain metastasis to compare the risk/benefits of anticoagulant treatment. We also describe a clinical case and a systematic review of the literature on the management of anticoagulant treatment in patients with brain metastases and DVT. The principal objective of this review was to clarify the main questions about the management of this type of patient based on a clinical case.