Korean J Cytopathol.  1994 Dec;5(2):189-193.

Malignant Thymoma Diagnosed by Fine Needle Aspiration Cytology: A case Report

• Kang UH
• Sohn JH
• Kim DH
• Pang SS
• Yang SE
• Suh JI

Abstract

Malignant thymoma is usually manifested as a mediastinal mass. Occasiomally, these tumors may be associated with a variety of systemic syndromes, such as myasthenia gravis, pure red cell aplasia or hypogammaglobulinemia. However, it is generally accepted that thymomas rarely metastasize and the frequency of extrathoracic metastasis has been reported as 1 to 15%. In general, nuclear changes of tumor cells such as enlarged size, irregular shape and altered textures are determining feactors in the assessment of the grade of malignancy. We experienced a case of malignant thymoma of anterior mediastinum in a 35-year-old woman. After 3 years, she developed recurrent malignant thymoma in the right supraclavicular area, diagnosed by aspiration biopsy cytology.

Keyword

Malignant thymoma; Aspiration cytology

MeSH Terms

Adult
Agammaglobulinemia
Biopsy, Fine-Needle*
Biopsy, Needle
Female
Humans
Mediastinum
Myasthenia Gravis
Neoplasm Metastasis
Red-Cell Aplasia, Pure
Thymoma*