A surgical case of cavernous hemangioma in the anterior mediastinum

Abstract

We report a surgical resection case of cavernous hemangioma in the thymus.
A 71-year-old male was referred to our hospital because of abnormal shadow of the left lower lung field on chest X-ray film taken at a physical examination. Chest CT showed no abnormality in the referred lung field but a homogenous tumor in the anterior medistinum just in front of the main pulmonary artery. Plain chest X-ray and CT did not show any spot of calcification. Through a median sternotomy, the tumor was resected with the thymus on Dec. 16, 1998. The tumor was 3 cm in diameter, and histological examination revealed that it was a benign cavernous hemangioma. No capsule was found histologically, but the tumor was localized in the thymus. Therefore, we believe the tumor was resected completely. This case suggests that limited operation is possible if the pre-operative diagnosis is certain. We need more knowledge to make secure preoperative diagnosis of mediastinal hemangioma