ORIGINAL ARTICLE
Thromboembolic Complications in Patients with Digestive
Malignancies
Vlad-Alexandru IONESCU1,2,
Anca-Elena BARBU2, Gina GHEORGHE1,2,
Vlad BUICA2, Crista-Loredana TIUCA1,2, Camelia Cristina
DIACONU1,2,3
1Department of Internal Medicine, Clinical Emergency Hospital of
Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania
2“Carol Davila” University of Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania
3Academy of Romanian Scientists
DOI 10.56082/annalsarscimed.2024.2.50
Correspondence: Anca-Elena Barbu, “Carol Davila” University of
Medicine and Pharmacy, Bucharest, Romania; e-mail: ancaa.elena99@gmail.com
Abstract. Introduction. Venous thromboembolism is the second leading cause
of mortality in cancer patients. Patients with malignant conditions have a
ninefold increased risk of thrombotic complications, and approximately 20% of
patients with venous thromboembolism also associate cancer. The aim of our
study was to determine the incidence and predictive factors for thromboembolic
complications in patients with digestive cancers. Materials and methods: We
conducted a retrospective study over six years, including 200 patients
hospitalized in the Clinical Emergency Hospital of Bucharest, Romania, with
digestive malignancies and thromboembolic complications. Results: The
prevalence of venous thromboembolism among patients with malignant digestive
tumors was 9.2%. The average age of these patients was 66 years. The
malignancies with the highest incidence of thrombotic complications were
pancreatic cancer, colorectal cancer, hepatocellular carcinoma, and gastric
cancer. Histologically, all cancers were identified as adenocarcinoma, with 70%
of patients exhibiting poorly differentiated tumors, and advanced tumor stages
were observed in all cases. The most prevalent thrombotic complication was
portal vein thrombosis, followed by deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary thromboembolism.
The in-hospital mortality rate of these patients was 23.5%, while the 5-year
mortality rate was 82.5%. Conclusions: We propose, as a future research
direction, the enhancement of approaches to evaluate the risk of venous
thromboembolism and discovery of novel biomarkers with a predictive role in
patients with malignant tumors.
Keywords: venous
thromboembolism; digestive cancers; prevalence; risk factors; mortality rate;
prognosis.
