Prothrombotic Mutations and Cancer-Associated Venous Thrombosis

Venous thrombosis has an incidence in the general population of 1 to 3 per 1000 per year (1). Venous thrombosis mostly manifests in the lower extremities and when migrating to the lungs, as pulmonary embolism. Other, more rare locations are the upper extremities, mesenterial veins, retinal veins, and cerebral sinus. For cancer patients, the incidence is much higher than in the general population, and depends on the type and stage of cancer and cancer treatment. In general, the risk of venous thrombosis in cancer patients is approximately seven times increased compared to the general population, while for patients with recently diagnosed cancer, the risk is even higher (2). Cumulative incidences vary from 6% to 10% in the fi rst year after diagnosis (3,4).