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Vol.55 No.1 contents | Japanese/English |
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- Case Report -
Intrathoracic Recurrent Thymoma Exhibiting Rapid Progression After Resection
Akira Kameyama1, Takashi Iwazawa1, Kiyonori Nishioka2, Shiro Adachi3, Ken Kodama4, Keizo Dono11Department of Surgery, Toyonaka Municipal Hospital, Japan, 2Department of Surgery, Kinki Central Hospital of the Mutual Aid Association of Public School Teachers, Japan, 3Department of Pathology, Toyonaka Municipal Hospital, Japan, 4Department of Surgery, Yao Municipal Hospital, Japan
Background. Thymomas usually grow slowly, and recurrence is often diagnosed several years after resection. We encountered a case of recurrent thymoma that showed rapid progression within four months after the first operation. Case. A woman in her 70s underwent resection of a thymoma together with a part of the pericardium and left lung in July 2011. The histological diagnosis was type B3 according to the WHO classification and stage III thymoma according to the Masaoka classification. Four months after the first operation, chest XP showed a mass measuring 60 mm in diameter in the left middle lung field. As the mass did not shrink over the initial six months after the operation, PET-CT and aspiration needle cytology were performed, and the mass was diagnosed as recurrent thymoma. We performed reoperation eight months after the initial surgery. The tumor showed adhesion to the chest wall and a portion of the left lung; therefore, we resected it in addition to the 6-9th ribs of the left back and the inferior lobe of the left lung simultaneously. The pathological findings of the resected specimen of the second operation also showed type B3 thymoma. The thymoma did not directly invade the ribs or lung, although there was solo lung metastasis. The patient did not receive adjuvant therapy, such as chemotherapy or radiation, and survived for two years after the operation, without any signs of tumor recurrence. Conclusions. We experienced a rare case of recurrent thymoma displaying rapid progression after resection. This case is considered to be valuable for discussing the mechanisms underlying the recurrence and progression of thymoma.
key words: Thymoma, Early recurrence, Rapid progression, Masaoka stage III, WHO type B3
Received: September 28, 2014
Accepted: January 26, 2015
JJLC 55 (1): 42-47, 2015
