[Uncommon diagnosis in a patient with fever and new-onset cardiac murmur].

HISTORY AND PHYSICAL FINDINGS: A 34-year old man was referred because of persistent low-grade fever and a newly-diagnosed systolic murmur. He complained of atypical chest pain and dyspnoea on exertion for the past few weeks.

STUDIES: Blood analysis revealed an elevated CRP level (67.7 mg/l) along with a hypochromic, microcytic anaemia (Hb 122 g/l). Transthoracic echocardiography showed an extracardiac tumour compressing the right ventricular outflow tract. Computed tomography (CT) localized the tumour in the anterior upper mediastinum. Subsequently, a biopsy was carried out and revealed a non-seminomatous germ-cell tumour.

DIAGNOSIS, TREATMENT AND COURSE: The diagnosis having been made the patient received four cycles of chemotherapy according to the BEP-protocol (bleomycin-etoposide-cisplatin). The remaining tumour was then resected surgically. After additional cycles of chemotherapy two autologous stem cell transplantations were carried out.

CONCLUSION

This patient presented initially with symptoms typical of endocarditis. However, the reason for his newly diagnosed systolic murmur and persistent fever was an extracardiac germ cell tumor compressing the right ventricular outflow tract.