Lymphatic metastasis in the mitral valve.

Involvement of the heart by metastatic neoplasm is not uncommon. Postmortem studies of patients with malignant disease show that cardiac involvement occurs in up to 21 per cent of cases (Bisel, Wr6blewski, and LaDue, 1953). The pericardium, epicardium, and myocardium are the areas of the heart most commonly involved by secondary tumour; spread to the endocardium and heart valves is rare (Coller, Inkley, and Moragues, 1950). We report a case of secondary tumour spread into the substance of the mitral valve; this was a chance finding on histological examination of a surgically removed rheumatic valve.