Thymoma with ganglioneuroblastomatous component: case report

Abstract

A mediastinal tumor in a 49-year-old woman with myasthenia gravis is reported. The tumor was well-demarcated and located in the supero-anterior mediastinum. Microscopically, the tumor consisted of thymic and neuroblastic tumor components, the latter of which consisted of immature and maturing neuronal cells, abundant neuropils, and Schwannian stroma. The two components intermingled with each other inside the tumor capsule. The tumor was diagnosed as thymoma with a ganglioneuroblastomatous component. The coexistence of epithelial and neuronal tissues in the thymic neoplasm is extremely rare.

Mesenchymal Tumors of the Mediastinum: An Update on Diagnostic Approach

“…245 Ganglioneuroblastomatous differentiation has been reported in thymomas. 246 Symptoms are often secondary to large tumor size, intraspinal extension, or local invasion. Grossly, it tends to be better circumscribed than neuroblastoma and is sometimes surrounded by a wellformed capsule.…”

“…It arises mostly in the posterior mediastinum,242–244 and rarely occurs in the anterior mediastinum 245. Ganglioneuroblastomatous differentiation has been reported in thymomas 246. Symptoms are often secondary to large tumor size, intraspinal extension, or local invasion.…”