A Case of Thymic Carcinoma That Achieved a Long-term Progression-free Survival by Radiation Therapy and Sequential Chemotherapy for Postoperative Intrathoracic Recurrence

Abstract

Background. Therapeutic effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy have been reported for thymic carcinoma, but the evidence is scarce. We herein report a case of postoperative intrathoracic recurrence in which a long-term progression-free survival was achieved by radiotherapy and sequential chemotherapy. Case. A 55-year-old man underwent extended thymectomy and a lymph node biopsy for anterior mediastinal tumor. Six months after the operation, recurrence was observed in the right anterior chest. Radiation therapy was performed, chemotherapy with carboplatin and paclitaxel was performed, and a complete response was obtained. Sixty months have passed since successive radiochemotherapy was performed for recurrence, and no recurrence had been observed, with the patient still alive. Conclusion. We herein report a valuable case in which a five-year progression-free survival was obtained by sequential radiochemotherapy for a recurrent case of thymic carcinoma.