The Overlay of Cervical Cancer with Cardiac Metastasis

Cervical cancer ranks first for cancer-related deaths among women. Having metastasis to the heart from the cervical cancer holds a poor prognosis with average survival being under 6 months. This metastasis is an understudied phenomenon. For this crossroad of gynecological oncology and cardio-oncology, this scoping review maps the available evidence on cervical cancer with cardiac metastasis to better understand how, when, where cervical cancer spreads in the heart and what can be done with current diagnostic and treatment modalities.

A scoping review was conducted in accordance with PRISMA-ScR guidelines with 41 case reports published between 1965 and 2025 globally were included through systematic search using PubMed and Google Scholar. Data on histologic subtype, time of metastasis, clinical symptoms, echocardiogram findings, and treatment modalities and outcomes were extracted and studied.

The women aged between 40 and 60 years. Squamous cell carcinoma was the most common subtype of cervical cancer. Cardiac metastasis primarily involved the right ventricle followed by the right atrium, interventricular septum and pericardium. Asymptomatic presentations delayed clinical recognition of metastasis while symptomatic findings led to a misdiagnosis. Echocardiography, MRI, and PET-CT played important diagnostic roles. Treatments included chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy, and surgical excision; however, after intervention, prognosis remained poor, with death in most cases within 6-9 months.

This review emphasizes the need for heightened clinical suspicion of cardiac metastasis in patients with advanced or recurrent cervical cancer presenting with cardiac symptoms. Timely detection and treatment may improve clinical outcomes in patients.