Catheter – related thrombosis in cancer patients: Data from the registry of thrombosis and nEoplasia of SEOM (TESEO)

Background

Catheter related thrombosis (CRT) is the most frequent non-infectious complication associated with central venous access devices (CVAD), with a reported incidence between 13 % and 66 % in symptomatic and asymptomatic patients, respectively, with several factors influencing its development.

Methods

CRT events recorded in TESEO, an international, multicentric, and prospective cancer-associated thrombosis registry were assessed. Descriptive analyses were conducted.

Results

Between July 2018 and December 2023, 2,567 patients were included in TESEO. Of these, 245 patients developed CRT and were included in this analysis. Mean age was 60.5 years (SD 12.3). Peripherally inserted central catheters (PICC) were present in 42.1%, totally implanted ports (PORT) in 40.9% while 17% had missing data. The most common reported comorbidities were arterial hypertension (28.6%) and dyslipidemia (28.2%). Other thromboembolism associated risk factors were present in ≤10% of patients.

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) related symptoms occurred in 70.2% of cases at presentation. Pulmonary embolism (PE) was present in 6.5%, being clinically suspected in 56.2% of cases. The diagnosis was mainly unilateral (81.3%) and 50% were central. Arterial and venous rethrombosis was present in 0.8% and 4.9% of cases respectively. Minor bleeding episodes occurred in 2.5% of cases, while major/clinically relevant episodes were present in 3.6%.

Conclusions

Usual VTE associated risk factors were infrequent in the TESEO registry population. CRT was symptomatic in most cases, with reduced complication rates after treatment.