Thymoma: Current concepts

Thymomas are unusual tumors, representing no more than 1% of all malignancies. However, thymomas are the most common epithelial tumors of the anterior mediastinum. Unfortunately, there is no general agreement regarding the best parameters to use to predict clinical behavior in these tumors. This review considers the status of the different histological classifications thus far presented for thymomas and offers an analysis of the association between histology and clinical behavior. It also emphasizes the importance of proper staging of thymomas, delineating the benefits and shortcomings of different proposed staging systems and offering thoughts on a better and more accurate staging stratification for patients with these tumors. All of the different parameters are presented in relation to survival rates. Based on current information, staging with proper stratification remains the most important parameter for predicting prognosis. For tumors limited to the mediastinal compartment, surgical resection is the most effective treatment, while induction therapy is a good alternative for patients in whom surgical resection is not possible.