Anterior mediastinal mass: A case report of thymoma (original) (raw)

2015, International Journal of Medical Science and Public Health

Invasive thymoma and thymic carcinomas are relatively rare tumors, which together represent approximately 0.2%-1.5% of all malignancies. [3] Overall incidence of thymoma is 0.15 cases per 100,000, based on data from the National Cancer Institute Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results program. [4] Thymomas are indolent tumors with a tendency toward local recurrence rather than metastasis. The usual location of thymoma is anterosuperior mediastinum and is discovered incidentally by chest radiography during a routine examination. They can produce symptoms such as cough, dyspnea, palpitation, and substernal or interscapular pain. There are a number of paraneoplastic syndromes associated with thymoma. Classically, thymomas are encapsulated, circumscribed, and lobulated neoplasm. Thymoma contains varying proportions of epithelial cells and lymphocytes. However, the epithelial cells are the only neoplastic elements in such tumors. [5] Case Report A 52-year-old, man presented with complaints of breathlessness and dry cough on and off for the past 6 months, wheezing since 1 week, and history of fever for past 4 days, was referred to our hospital. The patient had no significant personal or family history of carcinoma and was nonsmoker and nonalcoholic, and there were no complaints of hoarseness of voice or dysphagia. The results of the general and chest examinations were normal. A 52-year-old male patient who had complaints of breathlessness, dry cough, wheezing, and fever was referred to the Department of Chest Medicine. A plain chest X-ray showed gross widening of the mediastinum with a well-defined homogenous opaque shadow predominantly involving superior mediastinum. Chest CT scan was also carried out, which showed a well-defined ovoid predominantly isodense to hypodense lesion. All these features were suggestive of benign thymoma for which surgery was the mainstay of treatment along with induction chemotherapy and adjuvant radiotherapy. A multidisciplinary approach was recommended for the evaluation and treatment of thymoma or thymic carcinoma owing to its potential for invasion and local recurrence.