Clinical features and prognostic factors in thymoma and thymic carcinoma
- PMID: 39416339
- PMCID: PMC11473478
- DOI: 10.1007/s12055-024-01741-6
Clinical features and prognostic factors in thymoma and thymic carcinoma
Abstract
Introduction: Thymic epithelial tumors represent the most common cause of anterior mediastinal masses in adults. Among these tumors, thymomas constitute the majority, whereas thymic carcinomas are less prevalent and associated with a poorer prognosis. This study seeks to investigate the clinical and prognostic factors of these rare entities, thymoma, and thymic carcinomas.
Materials and methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis on a cohort of 60 patients diagnosed with thymoma and thymic carcinoma, who were under follow-up at our clinic between January 1998 and February 2023. The clinical characteristics and prognostic factors of these patients were analyzed separately.
Results: Thymomas accounted for 75% of the cases. The median age at diagnosis was 46 years in both patient groups. Masaoka stage 4 was observed in 28.9% of thymoma patients and 66.7% of thymic carcinoma patients. The median overall survival (mOS) for thymoma patients was 261.4 months, while it was 9.23 months for patients with thymic carcinoma. Curative surgery emerged as a prognostic factor significantly influencing overall survival in both thymoma and thymic carcinoma patients.
Conclusion: Our study highlights the significance of Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status and curative surgery as prognostic factors affecting overall survival in thymoma patients. In thymic carcinoma, only curative surgery was found as a prognostic factor. These findings may enhance patient care and guide personalized treatment strategies. Further investigations and prospective studies are warranted to corroborate and expand upon these results.
Keywords: Curative surgery; Masaoka stage; Thymic carcinoma; Thymoma.
© Indian Association of Cardiovascular-Thoracic Surgeons 2024. Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
Conflict of interest statement
Conflict of interestIn our study, we did not receive any financial support or sponsorship. The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest among them. All the research and analysis were conducted independently without any external influence or funding. The study was solely driven by the scientific curiosity and dedication of the authors to contribute to the field of thymic epithelial tumors. The absence of any financial or personal conflicts of interest ensures the objectivity and integrity of our research findings.
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