Acute heart failure due to fulminant myocardial infiltration by a diffuse large B-cell lymphoma.

Secondary cardiac lymphoma is commonly recognised as one of the most frequent metastatic malignancies involving the heart, after lung and breast carcinomas. Most primary and secondary cardiac lymphoma are non-Hodgkin lymphomas.The pericardium is the most frequently involved cardiac structure. However, the myocardium and the endocardium can also be affected. The patient presented in this case report had a secondary cardiac diffuse large B cell lymphoma. He presented initially with dyspnoea due to cardiac tamponade. He died one month after pericardial fenestration as a result of acute left and right heart failure due to diffuse lymphomatous infiltrations.This cardiac infiltration progressed so quickly that histological diagnosis could not be obtained before death. Autopsy revealed massive infiltration of the heart, the thyroid, abdominal lymph nodes, the left kidney, the pancreas and the right testis.