Thymoma history and symptoms
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
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Overview
A third of all people with a thymoma have symptoms due to compression of the surrounding organs by an expansive mass. This may take the form of vena cava superior syndrome (compression of the upper caval vein), dysphagia (difficulty swallowing), cough or chest pain.
A third have a thymoma detected because they have an associated autoimmune disorder. The most common condition in this group is myasthenia gravis (of which 25-50% are associated with a thymoma); patients with myasthenia are routinely screened for thymoma. Other associated autoimmune conditions are pure red cell aplasia and Good's syndrome (thymoma with combined immunodeficiency and hypoimmunoglobulinemia G). Rare associations that have been reported are: acute pericarditis, Addison's disease, agranulocytosis, alopecia areata, ulcerative colitis, Cushing's disease, hemolytic anemia, limbic encephalopathy, myocarditis, nephrotic syndrome, panhypopituitarism, pernicious anemia, polymyositis, rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis, scleroderma, sensorimotor radiculopathy, stiff person syndrome, systemic lupus erythematosus and thyroiditis.
A third to half of all people with a thymoma have no symptoms at all, and the mass is identified on a chest X-ray performed for an unrelated problem.