Heart cancer: Is there such a thing?

Heart cancer is extremely rare. Although heart tumors do occur, the vast majority are noncancerous (benign). A 20-year review of 12,487 consecutive autopsies in Hong Kong identified only seven cases of cardiac tumor — an incidence of less than 0.1 percent — most of which were benign.

Cancerous (malignant) tumors of the heart are most often sarcomas, a type of cancer that originates in the soft tissues of the body. Occasionally, cancer can spread to the heart, such as from lymphomas that originate in the structures of the chest near the heart. Other cancers that can spread to the heart include melanomas and sarcomas.

Cancer can affect the heart in other ways, such as by causing damage to the heart valves (marantic endocarditis) or stiffening of the heart muscle (cardiac fibrosis). Cancer treatments can also affect the heart. Certain chemotherapy drugs — such as anthracyclines, high-dose cyclophosphamide (Cytoxan), 5-FU, taxanes, trastuzumab (Herceptin) and IL-2 — can damage the heart. Radiation therapy directed at or near the heart can cause damage to the heart muscle and increase the risk of coronary artery disease later in life.