[Cardiac tamponade as first clinical manifestation of small cell carcinoma]

A 69 year old man was diagnosed of cardiac tamponade. At surgery a large hemopericardias was evacuated, cardiac and pericardial metastasis of an oat cell carcinoma was demonstrated. The patient died 4 weeks later. A review of the literature is done about patients with cardiac tamponade as the first manifestation of a neoplastic process.