2015 Volume 29 Issue 5 Pages 627-631
A 52-year-old woman presented with anterior chest pain and fever. Chest computed tomography revealed a 50-mm, left anterior mediastinal cystic tumor with a thickened wall, and left pleural effusion. A few days after admission, the chest pain, fever, and pleural effusion disappeared. Thymothymectomy was performed to confirm the diagnosis. Histopathologically, the tumor was composed of an extended necrotic area, and some viable tumor cells were observed in the subcapsular region. Therefore, the diagnosis was a stage I (Masaoka staging) type B1 thymoma. No recurrence has been observed for approximately 2 years since the surgery. Thymomas have a variety of pathological features such as cystic and hemorrhagic changes and necrosis. However, thymomas with extended necrosis are very rare. Therefore, we report this case with a review of the literature.
