Diagnosis and treatment of epithelial thymic tumors

摘要

Objectives: To analyze diagnostic and therapeutic aspects of epithelial thymic tumors. Patients and methods: This is a retrospective study of a case series. Data were collected on demographic, clinical, therapeutic and management aspects of the tumor in 23 patients seen between January 2003 and December 2009. These were analysed using SPSS software. Results: The mean age was 45 +- 12.6 years, and male/female sex ratio was 1.6. Myasthenia was present in 43.5%. 78.3% of tumors were considered resectable. A pre-operative diagnosis was necessary in 26%. Complete resection of the tumor was performed in 82.6%. Neo-adjuvant treatment chemotherapy was administered in five cases; resection was possible in only one of those. Adjuvant radiotherapy was indicated in six patients. The operative morbidity was 26%. Post-operative survival rate was 95%, with a median follow-up of 37 months (range: 9-91 months). For non-operated patients, one is alive, two have died and one was lost to follow-up. Conclusion: Thymic epithelial tumors are rare and remain the most frequent thymic tumors. They are usually diagnosed per-operatively. Well-encapsulated thymomas are treated surgically. However, invasive forms require a multi-facetted approach. The prognosis of thymic tumors depends on the stage and on the extent of resection.