Intracardiac metastases from neuroendocrine tumours

We report three cases of intra-cardiac metastases from neuroendocrine tumours of the carcinoid type. One presented in a manner identical to a left atrial myxoma; in one patient a left atrial mass was noted during investigations for weight loss and a lung mass; and in the third, two right ventricular deposits were detected on echocardiography when a patient with a disseminated GHRH-secreting tumour was investigated for dyspnoea. Although to our knowledge this is only the third report of these lesions, we believe that this represents a form of carcinoid heart disease that is distinct from the valvular abnormalities seen in some patients with carcinoid syndrome. Neuroendocrine metastases should be considered in the differential diagnosis of intra-cardiac tumours.