Ectopic Cervical Thymoma Excised through a Transcervical Approach Combined with Video-assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery: A Case Report

Abstract

Ectopic cervical thymoma (ECT) is a rare tumor. We present a case of 56-year-old woman with an ECT in the anterior neck that was correctly diagnosed preoperatively. The patient had no symptoms of myasthenia gravis or other immune disorders, and the tumor was not invading any adjacent structures. We performed tumor resection and thymectomy through a transcervical approach using video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery with a multi-access single port. To our knowledge, this is a novel combined technique for the resection of an ECT.

Fig. 1

Computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance image (MRI). (a, b) Contrast enhanced CT showing a lesion oppressing the trachea and thyroid (arrow). (c, d) MRI showing a well-defined round lesion with multilocular structures. Gadolinium contrast enhancing MRI revealing the lesion with slow enhancement.

Fig. 2

The operative view. (a) Neck tumor dissected through a collar incision indicating the adjacent structures near the tumor. Surgically, no invasion into the thyroid was seen. (b) A multi-access single port inserted from the subxiphoid space toward the anterior mediastinum.