Detrimental effect of cardiopulmonary bypass(CPB) on malignant disease

Patients with coronary artery disease associated with malignancy are a difficult group of patients to treat. The ideal approach to manage them is still controversial. Both problems can be manage by either a combined or staged operation. The use of CPB during revascularization of the myocardium among patients with malignant disease, may have an effect on dissimination of malignant cells. This was observed among two of our patients. We believe that the use of off-pump technique to revascularize the myocardium is a safe approach and can be performed either in combined or staged surgery to resect malignant disease.