Spontaneous Migration of Central Venous Catheter to Anterior Mediastinum

Central venous devices are routinely used in delivering chemotherapy and total parenteral nutrition. Spontaneous migration of central venous catheters is a very rare complication, but the etiology of this problem is not clear. We report here a case of migration of a port catheter to the anterior mediastinum in a patient with stage IVC nasopharyngeal cancer during chemotherapy. The patient presented with pulmonary manifestations in form of shortness of breath and chest tightness caused by left massive pleural effusion. The pleural effusion was resolved by thoracocentesis and the migrated catheter was retrieved surgically.