Multiple tumor emboli after pneumonectomy.

Systemic arterial tumor embolization is a rare complication after pulmonary resection. It may occur with primary or metastatic pulmonary malignancies, and is more frequently associated with pneumonectomy than with lesser pulmonary resections. Despite the rarity of this complication, tumor emboli should be considered in the etiology of extremity, cerebral, or multiorgan ischemia occurring during the perioperative period in patients undergoing pulmonary resections for malignancy.