Primary prevention and treatment of venous thromboembolic events in patients with gastrointestinal cancers - Review

Table 6 Take home messages

Patients with gastrointestinal cancers are among those with the highest cancer-associated VTE risk (e.g., pancreatic cancer, gastric cancer)

Primary prevention of VTE should be considered according to an individual risk-benefit estimation

Scoring systems help to identify patients at high VTE risk. These patients may benefit from prophylactic anticoagulation

Usual prophylactic dosages of LMWH may not be effective enough in patients with the highest risk (e.g., pancreatic cancer)

Gastrointestinal cancer patients with VTE should have medical anticoagulation therapy with LMWH for at least three to six months

In patients with gastrointestinal cancers splanchnic vein thrombosis, portal hypertension, hepatopathy-associated coagulation defects (e.g., decreased prothrombin time) and thrombocytopenia may complicate anticoagulation strategies

VTE: Venous thromboembolic event; LMWH: Low molecular weight heparins.